StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s Why

StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Friday . Approximately 2,720,186 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 114% from the previous session’s volume of 1,268,895 shares.The stock last traded at $47.7190 and had previously closed at $50.33.

Analyst Ratings Changes

STEP has been the topic of several recent research reports. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $56.00 price objective on shares of StepStone Group in a research note on Friday. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of StepStone Group in a report on Monday, July 20th. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of StepStone Group from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $58.00 price objective on shares of StepStone Group in a research report on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on StepStone Group from $72.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $70.62.

StepStone Group Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $5.70 billion, a PE ratio of -6.98 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $43.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $50.39.

StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $300.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $309.32 million. StepStone Group had a negative net margin of 26.88% and a positive return on equity of 37.69%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that StepStone Group Inc. will post 2.54 earnings per share for the current year.

StepStone Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were paid a dividend of $0.28 per share. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. StepStone Group’s payout ratio is -16.47%.

Insider Transactions at StepStone Group

In related news, insider Michael I. Mccabe purchased 120,000 shares of StepStone Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $41.85 per share, with a total value of $5,022,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 433,178 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,128,499.30. This trade represents a 38.32% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Jose A. Fernandez sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.60, for a total transaction of $4,860,000.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 102,290 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,971,294. This represents a 49.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 15.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On StepStone Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its stake in shares of StepStone Group by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 16,895 shares of the company’s stock valued at $806,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in StepStone Group by 58.6% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 544 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its position in StepStone Group by 105.0% in 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. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS increased its position in StepStone Group by 1.2% in the first quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 18,234 shares of the company’s stock worth $870,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the period. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in StepStone Group by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 6,899 shares of the company’s stock worth $443,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. 55.54% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.