# StepStone Group Inc. (STEP)

> Source: Nexqual · https://nexqual.com/STEP · data as of 2026-10-28 20:00 UTC · cite as "Nexqual, StepStone Group Inc. (STEP), nexqual.com/STEP" · informational, not investment advice.

**Price:** USD 42.98 (+2.48% on the day) · last close of Oct 28, 2026; US market closed, not a live price. Prev close 41.94 · day 41.58–43.05 · 52w 38.85–77.8 · market cap $5.55B · NMS

## Key facts
- Last four reported quarters (through Jun 30, 2026): revenue $2.01B, net income -$613M (-30.5% margin), free cash flow -$439M (SEC filings).
- Insider open-market sales, last ~7 months: 1 Form 4 filings, $9.6M; 0 not under a Rule 10b5-1 plan ($0K); 0 by opportunistic insiders, 0 by routine insiders (three-year test, Cohen, Malloy & Pomorski 2012).
- Insider open-market purchases, last ~7 months: 1 Form 4 filing, $5.0M; 1 by opportunistic insiders, 0 by routine insiders.
- Analysts: Buy (mean 1.80 on a 1–5 scale) (10 analysts), mean target USD 64.7 (range 48–87).
- Total return with dividends: 1Y -28.7% vs S&P 500 +13.6%; 5Y +6.2% vs S&P 500 +79.8%.
- Next earnings: 2026-11-05, EPS estimate USD 0.56, revenue estimate $325M.

## Financials (SEC 10-K; TTM = last four 10-Q/10-K quarters)
| USD | FY2022 | FY2023 | FY2024 | FY2025 | FY2026 | TTM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $1.37B | -$67.6M | $712M | $1.17B | $1.99B | $2.01B |
| Net income | $194M | -$18.4M | $58.1M | -$180M | -$536M | -$613M |
| EPS (diluted) | $3.84 | -$0.30 | $0.91 | -$2.52 | -$6.78 | — |
| Free cash flow | $212M | $146M | $142M | $59.8M | $63.9M | -$439M |
| Net margin | 14.2% | 27.2% | 8.2% | -15.3% | -26.9% | -30.5% |
| Revenue growth | +73.4% | -104.9% | +1153.1% | +65.1% | +69.7% | — |
| Cash + short-term investments | $116M | $130M | $182M | $290M | $1.12B | — |
| Total debt | $62.9M | $98.4M | $149M | $269M | — | — |
Fiscal years end Mar. EPS is split-adjusted.

## Valuation (price ÷ last four quarters, through Jun 30, 2026)
P/S 2.8x · FCF yield -7.92% · Earnings yield -11.05% · Dividend yield (paid, TTM) 2.45%
P/E at fiscal year-ends: Mar 2024 40.9x.

## Insider sales (SEC Form 4, open-market, last ~7 months)
1 of 1 under a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan (scheduled in advance). Unplanned sales were timed by the insider.
| Trade date | Insider | Role | Shares | Value | % of holdings sold | 10b5-1 plan | Insider type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-01…2026-06-03 | Fernandez Jose A | Co-Chief Operating Officer | 202,290 | $9.6M | 11.1% | Yes | Too little history (no open-market trades in 2023 or 2024) |
% of holdings sold = shares sold ÷ (shares sold + all holdings the insider reported on that Form 4, direct and through trusts).
Insider type follows Cohen, Malloy & Pomorski (Journal of Finance, 2012). An insider who traded the stock in the same calendar month in each of the past three years is a routine trader; one who traded in each of those years without such a pattern is an opportunistic trader. In their study, trades by opportunistic insiders predicted future returns and trades by routine insiders did not. Counts open-market purchases and sales only (SEC Form 4 codes P and S) by that insider in that company. Not investment advice.

## Insider purchases (SEC Form 4, open-market, last ~7 months)
1 purchase, $5.0M. Private placements, offerings, dividend reinvestment and employee stock purchase plan buys are excluded.
| Trade date | Insider | Role | Shares | Value | Avg price | Insider type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-11 | McCabe Michael I | Head of Strategy | 120,000 | $5.0M | 41.85 | Opportunistic (traded every year 2023–2025, no repeating month) |

## Analysts
Consensus Buy (mean 1.80 on a 1–5 scale), 10 analysts; mean target USD 64.7 (low 48, high 87).
Rating changes, last 120 days:
| Date | Firm | Action | Rating | Price target |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-27 | BMO Capital | Target lowered | Outperform | $58 → $48 |
| 2026-10-02 | Wells Fargo | Initiated | Overweight | $55 |
| 2026-09-10 | RBC Capital | Initiated | Outperform | $65 |
| 2026-08-27 | Oppenheimer | Target lowered | Outperform | $90 → $88 |
| 2026-08-07 | UBS | Target raised | Buy | $63 → $69 |
| 2026-08-07 | Barclays | Target raised | Overweight | $60 → $62 |
| 2026-08-07 | Evercore ISI Group | Target raised | Outperform | $50 → $56 |
| 2026-07-21 | Morgan Stanley | Target lowered | Equal-Weight | $72 → $63 |
| 2026-07-13 | Evercore ISI Group | Target lowered | Outperform | $60 → $50 |
| 2026-07-13 | BMO Capital | Target lowered | Outperform | $62 → $50 |
| 2026-07-09 | Barclays | Target lowered | Overweight | $62 → $60 |

## Total return (dividends reinvested)
|  | 1Y (from 2025-10-29) | 5Y (from 2021-10-25) |
|---|---|---|
| Total return | -28.7% | +6.2% |
| S&P 500 (SPY) | +13.6% | +79.8% |
| Per year | -28.8% | +1.2% |
| Volatility (annualized) | 48.3% | 40.2% |
| Max drawdown | -46.9% (Jan 2026→Jun 2026) | -58.3% (Nov 2021→May 2023) |

## Peers (Asset Management)
BXSL (Blackstone Secured Lending Fund) USD 23.2 +0.39% · PDI (PIMCO Dynamic Income Fund) USD 14.1 +0.21% · VCTR (Victory Capital Holdings, Inc. ) USD 111.87 +1.12% · AMG (Affiliated Managers Group, Inc.) USD 393.24 +0.32% · SEIC (SEI Investments Company) USD 103.2 +0.31% · IVZ (Invesco Ltd) USD 28.68 +0.88%

## More
Full page: https://nexqual.com/STEP · Free keyless MCP server with the same data and citations: https://mcp.nexqual.com/mcp · Guide for agents: https://nexqual.com/agents · https://nexqual.com/llms.txt

## Supply chain and relationships (SEC annual reports)

Named in STEP's own 10-K filed 2026-05-27 (https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1796022/000162828026038446/step-20260331.htm):

| Relationship | Company | Sentence in the filing |
|---|---|---|
| Partner | StepStone Group Private Debt | "The Transaction Agreements provide for, among other things and subject to the terms and conditions therein, the exchange of the sellers' equity interests in the Asset Class Entities, as applicable, for a combination of (…" |
| Partner | StepStone Private Wealth | "Under our option agreement with respect to SPW, we may purchase certain profits interests of SPW and the purchase price for such purchases may be substantial." |
| Partner | If StepStone Group | "If StepStone Group Inc. were deemed an "investment company" under the Investment Company Act of 1940 as a result of its ownership of the Partnership or the General Partner, applicable restrictions could make it impractic…" |

## Revenue by product line (quarter ended 2026-06-30)

| Line | Revenue | Share | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Management and advisory fees, net | $269.2M | 71.0% | +27.5% |
| — Management & Advisory Fees Net Focused Commingled Funds (part of Management and advisory fees, net) | $170.8M | 45.1% | +44.0% |
| — Management & Advisory Fees Net Separately Managed Accounts (part of Management and advisory fees, net) | $75.3M | 19.9% | +7.0% |
| — Management & Advisory Fees Net Advisory & Other Services (part of Management and advisory fees, net) | $19.5M | 5.1% | -2.4% |
| — Management & Advisory Fees Net Fund Reimbursement Revenues (part of Management and advisory fees, net) | $3.6M | 1.0% | +64.7% |
| Performance fees | $109.7M | 29.0% | -28.3% |
| — Unrealized (part of Performance fees) | $44.0M | 11.6% | -50.5% |
| — Legacy Greenspring carried interest allocations (part of Performance fees) | $37.2M | 9.8% | -6.2% |
| — Realized (part of Performance fees) | $28.6M | 7.5% | +17.1% |
| Carried interest allocations | $72.5M | 19.1% | -36.0% |
| Income Based Incentive Fees | $7.0M | 1.8% | +59.1% |
| Total revenue | $378.9M | 100% | — |
The lines above cover 121% of total revenue.

## Revenue by region (quarter ended 2026-06-30)

| Line | Revenue | Share | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $280.6M | 74.1% | +106.3% |
| Non-U.S. countries | $98.3M | 25.9% | -56.9% |
| Total revenue | $378.9M | 100% | — |

## Analyst estimates and revisions

| Period | EPS est. | 90d ago | Change | Revenue est. | Analysts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current quarter (ends 2026-09-30) | $0.56 | $0.56 | -0.5% | $325.3M | 9 |
| Next quarter (ends 2026-12-31) | $0.75 | $0.72 | +5.0% | $587.3M | 9 |
| Current fiscal year (ends 2027-03-31) | $2.46 | $2.43 | +1.2% | $1.61B | 10 |
| Next fiscal year (ends 2028-03-31) | $3.40 | $3.30 | +3.1% | $1.90B | 10 |

## Options: expected move (Cboe, 15-min delayed)

Expected move by 2026-11-20 (includes earnings 2026-11-05): ±13.6%; last 8 reports averaged ±3%.

| Expiration | Days | ATM IV | Expected move |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-11-20 | 23 | 63.9% | ±13.6% |
| 2026-12-18 | 51 | 56.1% | ±17.5% |
| 2027-03-19 | 142 | 53.1% | ±26.9% |
| 2027-06-17 | 232 | 52.3% | ±33.4% |

## Earnings history and stock reaction
| Results filed | Quarter | EPS | Consensus | Surprise | Stock reaction |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 6, 2026 | Quarter ended Jun 30, 2026 | $0.48 | $0.50 | Miss −4.0% | -6.8% |
| May 20, 2026 | Quarter ended Mar 31, 2026 | $0.57 | $0.50 | Beat +14.0% | +4.2% |
| Feb 5, 2026 | Quarter ended Dec 31, 2025 | $0.65 | $0.60 | Beat +8.3% | -2.4% |
| Nov 6, 2025 | Quarter ended Sep 30, 2025 | $0.54 | $0.49 | Beat +10.2% | -2.4% |
| Aug 7, 2025 | — | — | — | — | +0.2% |
| May 22, 2025 | — | — | — | — | +4.4% |
| Feb 6, 2025 | — | — | — | — | -0.5% |
| Nov 7, 2024 | — | — | — | — | +2.9% |
EPS as reported against the analyst consensus before the release; surprise uses the cent-rounded figures shown (in dollars when EPS and consensus have opposite signs). Stock reaction = close before the results to close after (the first close following a release after the bell or before the open).

## Recent SEC filings (last 120 days)
| Filed | Form | What it says | Filing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-09-08 | 8-K | Shareholder vote results | https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1796022/000179602226000006/0001796022-26-000006-index.htm |
| 2026-08-07 | 10-Q | Quarterly report · period ended Jun 30, 2026 | https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1796022/000162828026054818/0001628280-26-054818-index.htm |
| 2026-08-06 | 8-K | Quarterly results | https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1796022/000162828026054289/0001628280-26-054289-index.htm |
| 2026-07-31 | Schedule 13G/A | Integrated Core Strategies (US) LLC, Millennium Management LLC: 6.8% of shares, passive 5%+ holder (amended) | https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1796022/000110465926089323/0001104659-26-089323-index.htm |
| 2026-07-21 | DEFA14A | Additional proxy material | https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1796022/000119312526310317/0001193125-26-310317-index.htm |
| 2026-07-21 | DEF 14A | Proxy statement (pay, board, votes) · period ended Sep 8, 2026 | https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1796022/000119312526310296/0001193125-26-310296-index.htm |
Source: SEC EDGAR. Quotes are the opening words of each item as filed.