Franklin Resources Inc. Grows Stock Position in StepStone Group LP (NASDAQ:STEP)

Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of StepStone Group LP (NASDAQ:STEP - Free Report) by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 871,718 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 66,523 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.76% of StepStone Group worth $50,455,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of StepStone Group by 48.5% during the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 6,227 shares of the company's stock worth $360,000 after purchasing an additional 2,035 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its stake in StepStone Group by 26.8% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,409,089 shares of the company's stock valued at $85,518,000 after acquiring an additional 297,989 shares during the period. L & S Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in shares of StepStone Group in the 4th quarter valued at $430,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of StepStone Group in the fourth quarter worth $563,000. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of StepStone Group in the fourth quarter worth $11,543,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.54% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of StepStone Group from $69.00 to $48.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Oppenheimer raised their target price on StepStone Group from $81.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on StepStone Group from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $66.21.

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StepStone Group Stock Down 7.3 %

Shares of StepStone Group stock traded down $3.58 on Thursday, reaching $45.16. The company's stock had a trading volume of 97,444 shares, compared to its average volume of 653,523. The company has a market capitalization of $5.24 billion, a P/E ratio of -26.78 and a beta of 1.36. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $55.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $59.56. StepStone Group LP has a 52-week low of $34.64 and a 52-week high of $70.38.

StepStone Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. StepStone Group's dividend payout ratio is presently -56.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling at StepStone Group

In other StepStone Group news, CAO Anthony Keathley sold 538 shares of StepStone Group 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,386 shares of the company's stock, valued at $87,318. The trade was a 27.96 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Scott W. Hart sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.43, for a total transaction of $614,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 18.44% of the company's stock.

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.