Shares of Goldman Sachs Group Inc could rise to between $175 and $200 in the next year if the investment banking firm can continue to report quarterly profits of $4 to $5 a share, Barron's said, citing analyst predictions.

Goldman shares closed at $156.84 on Friday, after having risen about 10 percent during the week.

Goldman in the first half of 2009 set aside about 49 percent of pretax profits to compensate its employees, but will likely set aside a lower percentage of profits for compensation in the second half of the year, the weekly newspaper said.

Goldman's pay looks excessive, but there's still a lot now for shareholders, Barron's said. That's probably good news for the stock.

(Reporting by Ransdell Pierson; Editing Bernard Orr)

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