StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) Stock Price Expected to Rise, JPMorgan Chase & Co. Analyst Says

StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) had its target price upped by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $84.00 to $91.00 in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 45.76% from the stock’s previous close.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Evercore set a $73.00 price target on shares of StepStone Group in a research report on Friday. Wall Street Zen upgraded StepStone Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 10th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of StepStone Group in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Evercore ISI set a $73.00 price objective on StepStone Group in a research note on Friday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of StepStone Group in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $79.75.

StepStone Group Stock Performance

StepStone Group stock opened at $62.43 on Friday. StepStone Group has a fifty-two week low of $40.07 and a fifty-two week high of $77.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.00 and a beta of 1.32. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $67.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $64.06.

StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.05. StepStone Group had a negative net margin of 30.66% and a positive return on equity of 26.11%. The business had revenue of $241.13 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $363.92 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.44 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 102.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that StepStone Group will post 1.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Michael I. Mccabe sold 74,214 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.14, for a total transaction of $4,908,513.96. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 122,209 shares in the company, valued at $8,082,903.26. This represents a 37.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Jose A. Fernandez sold 70,402 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.30, for a total transaction of $4,386,044.60. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 362,858 shares of company stock valued at $23,422,844. Insiders own 16.47% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On StepStone Group

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of StepStone Group by 65.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,723,073 shares of the company’s stock valued at $373,774,000 after buying an additional 2,257,880 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new stake in StepStone Group during the third quarter valued at about $50,859,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in StepStone Group by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,449,878 shares of the company’s stock worth $542,229,000 after acquiring an additional 728,410 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 320.8% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 749,841 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,972,000 after purchasing an additional 571,643 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG lifted its stake in shares of StepStone Group by 401.0% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 604,518 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,481,000 after purchasing an additional 483,847 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.54% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting StepStone Group

Here are the key news stories impacting StepStone Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target to $91 from $84 and reiterated an “Overweight” rating, implying roughly 45.8% upside from the current share price — a clear catalyst for buyer interest. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Q3 EPS beat: STEP reported $0.65 EPS vs. consensus ~$0.60, giving investors confidence in underlying profitability trends. Several outlets flagged the earnings beat. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Assets under management expanded to roughly $171B, up about $8B sequentially — a sign of continued fundraising/flows that supports fee revenue longer term. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.28/share (annualized yield ~1.8%), signaling capital return to shareholders and helping attract income-focused investors. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Strategy tailwinds: coverage and company commentary highlight growth from private-wealth channels and product diversification (helpful amid AI-related market shifts), supporting a more bullish growth narrative. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Company released the Q3 earnings slide deck and earnings-call materials (useful for due diligence but informational rather than a fresh catalyst). Presentation
• Neutral Sentiment: Full earnings-call transcripts and analyst write-ups are available for review; these help investors parse guidance and fees but are follow-up detail. Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue shortfall vs. some expectations: reported revenue of ~$241.1M was well below the consensus figure cited by some services (~$363.9M), and the company still shows a negative net margin (~-40%), which could pressure sentiment if investors focus on top-line durability and profitability conversion. Article Title

About StepStone Group

StepStone Group is a global private markets investment firm that provides specialized investment solutions across private equity, private credit and real assets. The firm offers customized portfolios, secondary interests, direct co-investments and tailored advisory services to institutional investors worldwide. StepStone’s integrated research and data analytics platform supports its investment teams in sourcing opportunities and monitoring portfolio companies.

Founded in 2007 as an independent private markets specialist, the company has grown its presence through both organic expansion and strategic partnerships.