StepStone Group LP (NASDAQ:STEP) Position Cut by National Bank of Canada FI

National Bank of Canada FI lowered its stake in StepStone Group LP (NASDAQ:STEP - Free Report) by 55.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 52,982 shares of the company's stock after selling 65,152 shares during the quarter. National Bank of Canada FI's holdings in StepStone Group were worth $3,070,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of STEP. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in StepStone Group by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 871,718 shares of the company's stock worth $50,455,000 after acquiring an additional 66,523 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of StepStone Group by 48.5% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 6,227 shares of the company's stock valued at $360,000 after purchasing an additional 2,035 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of StepStone Group by 26.8% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,409,089 shares of the company's stock valued at $85,518,000 after purchasing an additional 297,989 shares during the period. L & S Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in StepStone Group during the 4th quarter worth $430,000. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new position in StepStone Group in the 4th quarter worth $563,000. 55.54% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

StepStone Group Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of STEP traded up $0.67 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $46.34. The stock had a trading volume of 478,627 shares, compared to its average volume of 657,136. StepStone Group LP has a fifty-two week low of $34.64 and a fifty-two week high of $70.38. The company has a market cap of $5.37 billion, a PE ratio of -27.42 and a beta of 1.36. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $55.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $59.41.

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StepStone Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.07%. StepStone Group's payout ratio is -56.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on STEP. Barclays lowered their target price on StepStone Group from $69.00 to $48.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on StepStone Group from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on StepStone Group from $81.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $66.21.

Insider Buying and Selling at StepStone Group

In other StepStone Group news, CEO Scott W. Hart sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.43, for a total value of $614,300.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 110,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,757,300. This trade represents a 8.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Anthony Keathley sold 538 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.00, for a total transaction of $33,894.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,386 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $87,318. This trade represents a 27.96 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 18.44% of the stock is owned by insiders.

StepStone Group Profile

StepStone Group Inc is a private equity and venture capital firm specializing in direct, fund of funds, secondary direct, and secondary indirect investments. For direct investment, it seeks to invest in private debt, venture debt, incubation, mezzanine, distressed/vulture, seed/startup, early venture, mid venture, late venture, emerging growth, later stage, turnaround, growth capital, industry consolidation, recapitalization, buyout investments in mature and middle market companies.