Short Interest in StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP) Drops By 17.6%

StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 2,124,504 shares, a decline of 17.6% from the January 15th total of 2,579,673 shares. Approximately 2.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 556,677 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.8 days. Based on an average daily volume of 556,677 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.8 days. Approximately 2.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on STEP. Evercore ISI set a $73.00 target price on StepStone Group in a report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of StepStone Group in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on StepStone Group from $105.00 to $104.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on StepStone Group from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of StepStone Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, StepStone Group has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $79.63.

Insider Transactions at StepStone Group

In related news, insider Michael I. Mccabe sold 117,838 shares of the company’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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 306,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,258,921.20. This represents a 27.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Scott W. Hart sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.52, for a total transaction of $725,200.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 222,052 shares of company stock valued at $14,713,290. 16.47% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On StepStone Group

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its holdings in StepStone Group by 105.0% in the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 414 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd increased its stake 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 buying an additional 480 shares during the period. Quarry LP raised its position in shares of StepStone Group by 155.7% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 514 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 313 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of StepStone Group by 58.6% in 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. Finally, Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of StepStone Group by 127.8% in the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 581 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 326 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.54% of the company’s stock.

StepStone Group Trading Up 0.3%

STEP traded up $0.19 on Monday, reaching $56.76. The stock had a trading volume of 968,212 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,018,011. The company has a market capitalization of $6.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.18 and a beta of 1.32. StepStone Group has a fifty-two week low of $40.07 and a fifty-two week high of $77.79. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $67.39 and a 200-day moving average of $64.02.

StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) last released 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $363.92 million. StepStone Group had a positive return on equity of 31.44% and a negative net margin of 30.66%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 102.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.44 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that StepStone Group will post 1.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

StepStone Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be given a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. StepStone Group’s dividend payout ratio is -16.14%.

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.