StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) Stock Jumps 5.1% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• StepStone Group shares rose 5.1% to about $43.44, although trading volume was roughly 99% below the average daily level, limiting the significance of the move.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with eight Buy ratings, two Holds and one Sell; the consensus rating is “Moderate Buy” with a $67.22 price target.
• The company recently increased its quarterly dividend from $0.28 to $0.33 per share, producing a 3.1% annualized yield, but its latest quarterly EPS and revenue came in slightly below analyst expectations.

Shares of StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP - Get Free Report) rose 5.1% on Friday. The company traded as high as $43.19 and last traded at $43.4350. Approximately 16,698 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 99% from the average session volume of 1,236,520 shares. The stock had previously closed at $41.33.

Analyst Ratings Changes

STEP has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $56.00 price target on shares of StepStone Group in a report on Friday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of StepStone Group in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $55.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on shares of StepStone Group in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $65.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley set a $61.00 target price on shares of StepStone Group in a research report on Friday. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their target price on shares of StepStone Group from $90.00 to $88.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $67.22.

StepStone Group Trading Down 1.4%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.19 and a current ratio of 0.19. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $47.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $47.59. The company has a market cap of $5.02 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.47 and a beta of 1.29.

StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.50 by ($0.02). StepStone Group had a positive return on equity of 43.38% and a negative net margin of 30.53%. The firm had revenue of $300.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $309.32 million. Analysts anticipate that StepStone Group Inc. will post 2.50 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

StepStone Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Monday, August 31st were paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. This is a boost from StepStone Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 31st. StepStone Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -17.10%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On StepStone Group

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Essential Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 17,350.0% during the first quarter. Essential Partners LLC now owns 698 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 694 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 45.5% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,036 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 324 shares during the last quarter. Nykredit A S bought a new position in shares of StepStone Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $119,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 8.8% during the first quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 4,571 shares of the company's stock valued at $218,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of StepStone Group by 30.9% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 7,187 shares of the company's stock worth $312,000 after purchasing an additional 1,697 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.54% of the company's stock.

StepStone Group Company Profile

StepStone Group, Inc is a global investment firm focused on private markets. The company provides investment solutions and advisory services designed to help institutional and private wealth clients build diversified portfolios of alternative investments.

Its platform spans private equity, venture capital, private debt, infrastructure and real estate. StepStone invests through primary commitments to funds, secondary-market transactions and direct or co-investments, and also offers customized portfolios and separately managed investment solutions.

StepStone serves pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, endowments and foundations, insurance companies, family offices and private wealth investors across North America, Europe, Asia and other international markets.

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