Voya Investment Management LLC Purchases 138,857 Shares of StepStone Group Inc. $STEP

Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its position in StepStone Group Inc. (NASDAQ:STEP) by 36.1% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 523,991 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 138,857 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC’s holdings in StepStone Group were worth $34,222,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of STEP. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in StepStone Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $46,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 332.2% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,236 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 950 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 943.5% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,847 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 1,670 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in StepStone Group by 88.2% in the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,829 shares of the company’s stock valued at $102,000 after acquiring an additional 857 shares during the period. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in StepStone Group by 368.0% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 2,223 shares of the company’s stock valued at $118,000 after purchasing an additional 1,748 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.54% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at StepStone Group

In related news, CEO Scott W. Hart sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.70, for a total transaction of $617,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,234,000. This represents a 33.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Jose A. Fernandez sold 70,402 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.30, for a total value of $4,386,044.60. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 362,858 shares of company stock worth $23,326,344. Company insiders own 16.47% of the company’s stock.

StepStone Group Stock Performance

Shares of StepStone Group stock opened at $63.58 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $62.66 and a 200-day moving average of $61.03. StepStone Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $40.07 and a 52-week high of $68.40. The stock has a market cap of $7.52 billion, a PE ratio of -7.95 and a beta of 1.44.

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

StepStone Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 28th were paid a $0.28 dividend. This represents a $1.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 28th. StepStone Group’s payout ratio is -14.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

STEP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of StepStone Group from $69.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of StepStone Group in a report on Friday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $74.00 target price for the company. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of StepStone Group from $84.00 to $83.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of StepStone Group from $73.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of StepStone Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $64.00 to $83.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. One 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 given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.57.

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.