StepStone Restores Adjusted Earnings After a Drop

The Tip Desk · November 8, 2026 · 2 min read

Adjusted net income reached $82.9 million, or $0.66 a share, as fee-related earnings hit $126.2 million and the FRE margin widened to 42%.

StepStone Group Inc. (STEP) reported adjusted net income of $82.9 million, or $0.66 a share, for the quarter ended September 30, 2026, reversing a sequential decline in the prior quarter.

The global private markets investment firm said adjusted net income had fallen from $79.9 million in the three months ended December 31, 2025, to $69.5 million in the three months ended March 31, 2026, before the latest recovery.

Fee-related earnings, the company’s pre-tax measure of recurring management and advisory profitability, rose to $126.2 million from $105.6 million in the three months ended June 30, 2026. The FRE margin expanded to 42% from 39% in that prior quarter.

Fee revenues increased to $297.6 million from $270.9 million in the prior quarter. GAAP management and advisory fees, net, were $293.1 million.

Focused commingled funds contributed $194.4 million of fee revenues, up from $172.5 million in the prior quarter. Separately managed accounts added $78.8 million, and advisory and other services contributed $20.9 million.

GAAP total revenues were $773.1 million, compared with $378.9 million in the three months ended June 30, 2026. The company said total performance fees were $480.0 million. Unrealized carried interest allocations were $301.7 million.

Net income was $65.4 million, versus a net loss of $170.4 million in the prior quarter. Net loss attributable to StepStone Group Inc. was $71.2 million, or $0.87 a share, compared with a $1.41 a share loss in the prior quarter.

Assets under management stood at $261.0 billion as of September 30, 2026, up from $245.4 billion at June 30. Assets under advisement were $697.2 billion. Fee-earning AUM was $158.2 billion. Undeployed fee-earning capital was $42.4 billion. Total capital responsibility was approximately $958 billion.

The board declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.33 a share of Class A common stock, payable December 15, 2026, to holders of record as of November 30, 2026. The rate was unchanged from the dividend declared with the June quarter.

Cash and cash equivalents were $297.0 million at September 30, 2026. Accrued carried interest allocations were $2.38 billion.