StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) Shares Down 6.5% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP) fell 6.5% on Tuesday. The stock traded as low as $41.13 and last traded at $41.00. 332,885 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 1,231,844 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.84.

Analyst Ratings Changes

STEP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price target on StepStone Group from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen lowered StepStone Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of StepStone Group from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of StepStone Group in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $55.00 price objective for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $58.00 price objective on shares of StepStone Group in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.44.

StepStone Group Stock Down 6.9%

The stock has a market capitalization of $4.87 billion, a PE ratio of -5.29 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 0.19 and a quick ratio of 0.19. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $47.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $47.69.

StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.50 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $300.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $309.32 million. StepStone Group had a negative net margin of 30.53% and a positive return on equity of 43.38%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that StepStone Group Inc. will post 2.50 EPS for the current fiscal year.

StepStone Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 31st were paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 31st. This is a boost from StepStone Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. StepStone Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -17.10%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 1.2% during the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 16,895 shares of the company’s stock worth $806,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS increased its holdings in StepStone Group by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 18,234 shares of the company’s stock worth $870,000 after buying an additional 213 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in StepStone Group by 45.5% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 324 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its holdings in StepStone Group by 8.8% in the 1st quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 4,571 shares of the company’s stock worth $218,000 after buying an additional 368 shares during the period. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in StepStone Group by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 19,903 shares of the company’s stock worth $823,000 after buying an additional 484 shares during the last quarter. 55.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About StepStone Group

StepStone Group, Inc is a global investment firm focused on private markets. The company provides investment solutions and advisory services designed to help institutional and private wealth clients build diversified portfolios of alternative investments.

Its platform spans private equity, venture capital, private debt, infrastructure and real estate. StepStone invests through primary commitments to funds, secondary-market transactions and direct or co-investments, and also offers customized portfolios and separately managed investment solutions.

StepStone serves pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, endowments and foundations, insurance companies, family offices and private wealth investors across North America, Europe, Asia and other international markets.