Goldman Sachs Asset & Wealth Management - Buy-Side Equity Research Analyst, Healthcare - London

Goldman Sachs is hiring a healthcare equity research analyst into its Fundamental Equities investment team in London. The page lists the division as Asset & Wealth Management, the function as 'Investing & Portfolio Management - Public' and the corporate title as Associate. The role may initially have particular emphasis on Life Sciences Tools, Managed Care and MedTech, though the firm says it welcomes candidates from any healthcare subsector including pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and healthcare services. Source

What covering healthcare actually demands in London: quantifying patent cliffs and erosion curves, since small molecules lose 70-90% of revenue within two years of losing exclusivity and biosimilars 30-50%; probability-weighting pipeline assets by stage, with Phase III around 55-60%, and building rNPV from peak sales, time to market and discount rates of 10-12% for pharma and 12-15% for biotech; valuing MedTech and Life Sciences Tools on razor-and-blade recurring revenue at 15-25x and 20-30x EV/EBITDA, services at 8-15x and Big Pharma at 12-16x; and stress-testing reimbursement - NICE at £30K per QALY, NHS tariff cuts, IRA price negotiation. Clinical and regulatory binary events move these stocks more than 50%. Source

This is an experienced hire, not a student seat. The corporate title is Associate, the firm asks for two to five years, and the page sits on Goldman's mid-career route rather than its campus one. If you are an undergraduate or a graduate without research experience, the way into this building is the summer analyst and off-cycle programmes; this row is useful to you as evidence that Goldman is putting money behind healthcare coverage in London, and as a precise description of the job those programmes eventually lead to.

The page names a business but not a team in the organisational sense: Fundamental Equities inside Asset & Wealth Management, working to the Senior Healthcare Analyst. That singular matters - it tells you healthcare here is covered by a small number of people rather than a floor of sector specialists, so what you write goes straight into the investment discussion instead of through three layers of review. It also means the seat's shape depends heavily on one person, which is the thing to work out in the process.

The job as the firm sets it out: build and maintain sales forecasting and valuation models including DCF, sum-of-the-parts and relative valuation; analyse quarterly results, clinical data, regulatory decisions, reimbursement changes, competitive developments, management commentary and M&A; run primary research through management meetings, expert calls, key opinion leader discussions and the clinical and scientific literature; write earnings notes, research updates and investment memoranda; and generate differentiated ideas alongside the Senior Healthcare Analyst. The firm says the role is designed to develop from strong research execution into independent investment judgement, with increasing ownership of coverage over time. Source

18 people have held London roles at Goldman Sachs Asset Management since 2018 - a much smaller London footprint than the 232 in the Investment Banking Division, so the asset management side of the firm is a narrower door in both directions.

779 people have held London roles at Goldman Sachs as a whole since 2018, across banking, markets, research and asset management.

'Buy-side' is the distinction that decides everything about this job. On the buy side your research decides what the firm's own funds hold: the audience is a portfolio manager, the deliverable is a position, and you are marked by whether the position made money. Sell-side research - Goldman's own Global Investment Research is the other building - publishes to external clients and is marked on how useful those clients found you. The page's own framing, from research execution to independent investment judgement, is the buy-side career in one sentence: you are hired to analyse and promoted to decide.

A single named-sector analyst seat, posted mid-year on a mid-career page, is a capacity or replacement hire on one book. It closes when someone accepts rather than on a date, and the field is only people who already cover healthcare, so it is a harder posting to find than a programme place and a much easier one to win if you have the profile. Apply now rather than polishing.

The firm asks for typically two to five years of relevant experience in healthcare equity research, investing or another analytically rigorous healthcare-focused role, though it will consider candidates whose skills and track record fit; direct buy-side or sell-side research experience is strongly preferred. Experience in Life Sciences Tools, Managed Care or MedTech is desirable but not required. It wants strong financial modelling and valuation, the ability to synthesise clinical, regulatory, commercial, competitive and financial evidence into an investable view, and a bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline such as life sciences, medicine, engineering, economics or finance. Progress towards the CFA charter or an advanced finance, clinical or scientific qualification is advantageous but not required. Source

Read the experience bar honestly. Two to five years plus 'direct buy-side or sell-side research experience strongly preferred' means the realistic applicant is a sell-side healthcare associate or an analyst at a fund who already covers the sector. A life sciences PhD with no markets experience, or a banker with no healthcare coverage, is a stretch rather than a rejection - the firm leaves the door open for a track record that fits - but you would need to arrive with a written investment case on a healthcare name to make the argument.