StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation and seven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $75.25.

STEP has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on StepStone Group from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley set a $72.00 price target on StepStone Group in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Zacks Research downgraded StepStone Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Evercore set a $73.00 price target on StepStone Group in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of StepStone Group in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd.

StepStone Group Price Performance

Shares of StepStone Group stock opened at $48.54 on Thursday. StepStone Group has a 1 year low of $40.58 and a 1 year high of $77.79. The firm has a market cap of $5.78 billion, a PE ratio of -6.99 and a beta of 1.32. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $51.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $60.43.

StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $241.13 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $363.92 million. StepStone Group had a positive return on equity of 31.44% and a negative net margin of 30.66%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 102.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.44 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that StepStone Group will post 1.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

StepStone Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Monday, March 9th that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 1.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

StepStone Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th were paid a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 27th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. StepStone Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -16.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other StepStone Group news, CEO Scott W. Hart sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.52, for a total value of $725,200.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 16.47% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 967,800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,207,000 after buying an additional 25,559 shares in the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new position in shares of StepStone Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $50,859,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 49.0% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 487,461 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,836,000 after buying an additional 160,318 shares in the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 16.6% during the 3rd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 623,919 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,748,000 after buying an additional 88,794 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 36.1% during the 3rd quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 523,991 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,222,000 after buying an additional 138,857 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 55.54% of the company’s stock.

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.