StepStone Group LP (NASDAQ:STEP) has recently been the subject of notable market activity, including a significant insider stock transaction. Michael I. Mccabe, an insider at the company, executed a sale of a considerable portion of his holdings.

Specifically, on Wednesday, May 28th, Mr. Mccabe sold 199,741 shares of StepStone Group stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.92, resulting in a total transaction value of $11,968,480.72. This sale constituted a 28.89% decrease in his position within the company. Following this transaction, Mr. Mccabe now directly owns 491,582 shares of StepStone Group stock, which are valued at approximately $29,455,593.44. The sale was formally disclosed in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), accessible via the provided link in the original report.

Regarding its stock market performance, shares of StepStone Group (STEP) opened at $57.81 on Friday, indicating a 2.2% decline. The company has a market capitalization of $6.70 billion. Its financial metrics include a Price-to-Earnings (PE) ratio of -34.21 and a beta of 1.37, suggesting higher volatility compared to the broader market. Over the past twelve months, StepStone Group's stock has traded within a range of $40.07 (low) to $70.38 (high). The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $52.32, and its 200-day moving average price is $57.69.

StepStone Group released its latest earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The company reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.68 for the quarter, surpassing the consensus analyst estimate of $0.44 by $0.24. Its revenue for the quarter was $295.86 million, also exceeding the consensus estimate of $231.87 million. This performance marks a significant 66.8% increase in quarterly revenue compared to the same quarter in the previous year, during which the company had earned $0.33 EPS.

Financially, StepStone Group reported a positive return on equity of 12.04%, although it had a negative net margin of 11.29%. For the current fiscal year, equity research analysts project that StepStone Group LP will post an EPS of 1.82.

In addition to its earnings report, StepStone Group announced a quarterly dividend. The company will pay a dividend of $0.24 per share on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th, will be eligible to receive this dividend. This distribution represents an annualized dividend of $0.96, yielding 1.66%. The ex-dividend date for this payment is Friday, June 13th. StepStone Group’s current dividend payout ratio is -40.17%.

Several Wall Street brokerage firms have recently commented on StepStone Group's stock. Evercore ISI raised its target price on STEP from $63.00 to $69.00 and reiterated an “outperform” rating in a research note published on Monday, February 10th. Barclays has set a $62.00 price objective for StepStone Group and assigned the company an “equal weight” rating in their report.

Oppenheimer provided a $67.00 price objective and gave StepStone Group an “outperform” rating in a report dated Wednesday, April 16th. In contrast, Morgan Stanley reduced its price objective on the stock from $66.00 to $51.00, while maintaining an “equal weight” rating, in a report issued on Monday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group also updated its outlook, raising its price objective on StepStone Group from $57.00 to $63.00 and giving the company a “neutral” rating.

Based on data from MarketBeat.com, StepStone Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” among analysts. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, while three have assigned it a buy rating. The consensus price target for the stock is $62.57.

Institutional investment activity has also been noted. Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently adjusted their positions in StepStone Group. For instance, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC acquired a new position in the company during the fourth quarter, valued at approximately $27,000. Similarly, IFP Advisors Inc initiated a new position in StepStone Group during the fourth quarter, worth about $36,000. Versant Capital Management Inc also established a new position during the first quarter, valued at approximately $35,000.

Furthermore, Amundi increased its holdings in StepStone Group by 26.7% during the fourth quarter, now owning 730 shares valued at $42,000, after purchasing an additional 154 shares. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. significantly increased its stake by 444.4% during the fourth quarter, now holding 969 shares of the company’s stock, worth $56,000, after acquiring an additional 791 shares. Overall, 55.54% of StepStone Group's stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

StepStone Group Inc. is characterized as a private equity and venture capital firm. The firm specializes in various investment types, including direct investments, fund of funds, secondary direct investments, and secondary indirect investments. For its direct investment activities, StepStone Group focuses on opportunities in private debt, venture debt, incubation, mezzanine financing, distressed/vulture investments, seed/startup funding, early venture, mid venture, late venture, emerging growth, later-stage companies, turnarounds, growth capital, industry consolidation, and recapitalization, particularly within mature and middle-market companies.