StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP) Short Interest Update

StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 3,741,686 shares, a growth of 22.6% from the February 12th total of 3,051,721 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,095,853 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.8 days. Approximately 3.8% of the shares of the company are sold short. Approximately 3.8% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 2,095,853 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.8 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at StepStone Group

In other news, CEO Scott W. Hart sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.52, for a total transaction of $725,200.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 16.47% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On StepStone Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its position in StepStone Group by 105.0% during the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 414 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd raised its position in shares of StepStone Group by 2,285.7% in the third quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 501 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares during the period. Quarry LP raised its position in shares of StepStone Group by 155.7% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 514 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 313 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of StepStone Group by 58.6% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 544 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 201 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of StepStone Group by 127.8% during the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 581 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. 55.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on STEP shares. Wall Street Zen raised StepStone Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 10th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of StepStone Group in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on shares of StepStone Group from $105.00 to $104.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Barclays upgraded shares of StepStone Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $67.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Evercore set a $73.00 price target on shares of StepStone Group in a research report on Friday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $78.86.

StepStone Group Stock Up 3.8%

Shares of STEP stock opened at $46.59 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $59.61 and a 200-day moving average of $62.08. StepStone Group has a 12-month low of $40.07 and a 12-month high of $77.79. The firm has a market cap of $5.55 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.71 and a beta of 1.39.

StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $241.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $363.92 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.44 earnings per share. StepStone Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 102.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that StepStone Group will post 1.82 EPS for the current year.

StepStone Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th were given a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. StepStone Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently -16.14%.

StepStone Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 9th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 1.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

StepStone Group Company 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.