William Blair Investment Management LLC Boosts Stake in StepStone Group Inc. $STEP

Key Points

• William Blair Investment Management increased its StepStone Group stake by 7.4% in the fourth quarter, now holding 670,192 shares valued at about $43.0 million.
• StepStone reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $0.57 versus the $0.51 consensus and revenue of $305.84 million, up 3.4% year over year.
• The company also announced a $100 million share repurchase program and a quarterly dividend of $0.28 per share, implying a 2.1% annualized yield.

William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its stake in StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP - Free Report) by 7.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 670,192 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 46,273 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC owned 0.57% of StepStone Group worth $43,006,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in STEP. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,449,878 shares of the company's stock worth $542,229,000 after purchasing an additional 728,410 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in StepStone Group by 65.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,723,073 shares of the company's stock worth $373,774,000 after buying an additional 2,257,880 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in StepStone Group by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,138,979 shares of the company's stock valued at $270,317,000 after acquiring an additional 95,339 shares during the period. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in StepStone Group by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,961,976 shares of the company's stock valued at $193,447,000 after acquiring an additional 102,585 shares during the period. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its stake in StepStone Group by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,217,860 shares of the company's stock valued at $79,538,000 after acquiring an additional 37,679 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.54% of the company's stock.

StepStone Group Stock Performance

Shares of StepStone Group stock opened at $53.74 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 0.28 and a quick ratio of 0.17. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $50.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.10. StepStone Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $40.58 and a 1 year high of $77.79. The stock has a market cap of $6.40 billion, a PE ratio of -7.90 and a beta of 1.34.

StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 20th. The company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.06. StepStone Group had a negative net margin of 26.88% and a positive return on equity of 37.69%. The firm had revenue of $305.84 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $292.11 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.68 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that StepStone Group Inc. will post 2.57 earnings per share for the current year.

StepStone Group declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 9th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 1.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

StepStone Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $0.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. StepStone Group's payout ratio is presently -16.47%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

STEP has been the subject of several recent research reports. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on shares of StepStone Group from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of StepStone Group in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $60.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of StepStone Group from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of StepStone Group from $54.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $72.00 target price on shares of StepStone Group in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $71.88.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding STEP? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.