StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 3,051,721 shares, an increase of 43.6% from the January 29th total of 2,124,504 shares. Approximately 3.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,523,948 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days. Based on an average trading volume of 1,523,948 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days. Approximately 3.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

StepStone Group Stock Down 8.2%

Shares of NASDAQ STEP traded down $3.84 on Friday, hitting $43.14. The company had a trading volume of 3,067,265 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,718,078. StepStone Group has a 12-month low of $40.07 and a 12-month high of $77.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.14 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.22 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a 50 day moving average of $64.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $63.39.

StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 positive return on equity of 31.44% and a negative net margin of 30.66%.The firm 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 company posted $0.44 EPS. StepStone Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 102.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that StepStone Group will post 1.82 earnings per share for the current year.

StepStone Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be paid a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. StepStone Group’s dividend payout ratio is -16.14%.

Insider Activity

In other StepStone Group news, insider Michael I. Mccabe sold 117,838 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.20, for a total transaction of $7,800,875.60. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 306,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,258,921.20. This trade represents a 27.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Scott W. Hart sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.52, for a total transaction of $725,200.00. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 212,052 shares of company stock valued at $14,096,290 in the last three months. 16.47% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On StepStone Group

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in STEP. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of StepStone Group by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,413 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in StepStone Group by 58.6% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 544 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the period. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its holdings in StepStone Group by 105.0% in the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 414 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its stake in StepStone Group by 14.4% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,860 shares of the company’s stock valued at $121,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares during the period. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 35.5% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. 55.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on STEP. Zacks Research cut StepStone Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of StepStone Group from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Evercore set a $73.00 price target on shares of StepStone Group in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of StepStone Group in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on StepStone Group from $105.00 to $104.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $80.57.

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.