StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) Stock Crosses Below 200 Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP)’s share price passed below its two hundred day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $48.39 and traded as low as $46.84. StepStone Group shares last traded at $47.48, with a volume of 1,018,868 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of StepStone Group from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of StepStone Group in a report on Friday, October 2nd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $55.00 target price on the stock. Barclays upped their target price on shares of StepStone Group from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of StepStone Group from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $61.00 price target on shares of StepStone Group in a report on Friday, October 16th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, StepStone Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.78.

StepStone Group Trading Down 2.0%

The stock has a market cap of $5.67 billion, a PE ratio of -12.08 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.19 and a current ratio of 0.18. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $45.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $48.39.

StepStone Group (NASDAQ:STEP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.11. StepStone Group had a positive return on equity of 36.09% and a negative net margin of 13.68%. The company had revenue of $362.71 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $324.84 million. Equities analysts expect that StepStone Group Inc. will post 2.60 EPS for the current year.

StepStone Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 30th. StepStone Group’s payout ratio is presently -33.59%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of STEP. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of StepStone Group in the second quarter valued at $21,752,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of StepStone Group by 17.9% during the 3rd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 2,276,447 shares of the company’s stock worth $98,798,000 after purchasing an additional 346,432 shares during the period. Junto Capital Management LP boosted its stake in shares of StepStone Group by 26.1% during the 2nd quarter. Junto Capital Management LP now owns 1,078,672 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,614,000 after purchasing an additional 222,950 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in StepStone Group by 95.6% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 332,328 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,859,000 after purchasing an additional 162,467 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in StepStone Group by 53.6% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 414,722 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,791,000 after purchasing an additional 144,752 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors 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 helps institutional and other investors build and manage portfolios across private equity, private debt, infrastructure, and real estate. Its services include selecting and monitoring investments in private-market funds, making direct investments in companies and assets, and advising clients on portfolio strategy. StepStone also provides investment research and data services to support its work. Founded in 2007, StepStone serves clients including pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies, endowments, foundations, and family offices.