StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) Shares Gap Up – Here’s What Happened

StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $63.58, but opened at $66.10. StepStone Group shares last traded at $65.96, with a volume of 10,749 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered StepStone Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of StepStone Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $64.00 to $83.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on StepStone Group from $61.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on StepStone Group from $73.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on StepStone Group in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $74.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.57.

StepStone Group Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average price of $62.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $61.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.80 billion, a P/E ratio of -8.23 and a beta of 1.44.

StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.05. StepStone Group had a negative net margin of 40.06% and a positive return on equity of 21.53%. The company had revenue of $282.34 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $272.15 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.45 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 35.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that StepStone Group Inc. will post 1.82 EPS for the current year.

StepStone Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 28th were paid a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 28th. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. StepStone Group’s payout ratio is presently -14.00%.

Insider Transactions at StepStone Group

In other news, insider Michael I. Mccabe sold 117,838 shares of StepStone Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.20, for a total value of $7,800,875.60. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 306,026 shares in the company, valued at $20,258,921.20. This trade represents a 27.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Scott W. Hart sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.70, for a total transaction of $617,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,234,000. This trade represents a 33.33% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 362,858 shares of company stock valued at $23,326,344 in the last ninety days. 16.47% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On StepStone Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP boosted its position in StepStone Group by 213.2% during the third quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 156,855 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,244,000 after purchasing an additional 106,781 shares during the period. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd acquired a new position in StepStone Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $213,000. Prana Capital Management LP grew its stake in StepStone Group by 99.6% in the 3rd quarter. Prana Capital Management LP now owns 111,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,256,000 after buying an additional 55,433 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. bought a new position in StepStone Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $486,000. Finally, PDT Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 26.1% during the third quarter. PDT Partners LLC now owns 53,929 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,522,000 after acquiring an additional 11,154 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 55.54% of the company’s stock.

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.