StepStone Group Inc. $STEP Stock Holdings Increased by SG Americas Securities LLC

SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP) by 1,314.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 402,245 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 373,807 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in StepStone Group were worth $19,195,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its position in StepStone Group by 24.7% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 258,448 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,585,000 after buying an additional 51,125 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 19.2% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 7,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $511,000 after buying an additional 1,281 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of StepStone Group during the 4th quarter valued at $136,000. XTX Topco Ltd lifted its position in shares of StepStone Group by 114.6% during the 4th quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 14,318 shares of the company’s stock valued at $919,000 after acquiring an additional 7,645 shares during the last quarter. Finally, VARCOV Co. bought a new stake in shares of StepStone Group during the 4th quarter worth $238,000. 55.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at StepStone Group

In other StepStone Group news, insider Michael I. Mccabe purchased 120,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $41.85 per share, with a total value of $5,022,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 433,178 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,128,499.30. This represents a 38.32% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Jose A. Fernandez sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.60, for a total value of $4,860,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 102,290 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,971,294. This represents a 49.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 16.47% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on StepStone Group from $54.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. UBS Group initiated coverage on StepStone Group in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $60.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings lowered StepStone Group from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of StepStone Group in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their price objective on StepStone Group from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $71.88.

StepStone Group Stock Performance

StepStone Group stock opened at $40.91 on Friday. StepStone Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $40.58 and a 52 week high of $77.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.02 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $50.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $55.43.

StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 20th. The company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $305.84 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $292.11 million. StepStone Group had a negative net margin of 26.88% and a positive return on equity of 37.69%. The company’s revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.68 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that StepStone Group Inc. will post 2.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

StepStone Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.28 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. StepStone Group’s payout ratio is currently -16.47%.

StepStone Group Profile

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.