ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) Now Covered by Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com began coverage on shares of ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) in a report published on Wednesday. The firm issued a hold rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

ESSA Bancorp Price Performance

ESSA Bancorp stock opened at $20.91 on Wednesday. ESSA Bancorp has a 12-month low of $15.29 and a 12-month high of $21.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $19.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $19.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $212.34 million, a PE ratio of 12.02 and a beta of 0.40.

ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. ESSA Bancorp had a net margin of 14.83% and a return on equity of 7.33%.

ESSA Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.87%. ESSA Bancorp’s payout ratio is 34.48%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Barclays PLC boosted its position in ESSA Bancorp by 184.2% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 13,723 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $264,000 after buying an additional 8,895 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 126.5% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 14,567 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $280,000 after acquiring an additional 8,136 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 51.8% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 22,539 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $433,000 after purchasing an additional 7,696 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in ESSA Bancorp by 2.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 186,094 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,577,000 after purchasing an additional 4,431 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in ESSA Bancorp by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 47,608 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $915,000 after purchasing an additional 2,412 shares in the last quarter. 54.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

ESSA Bancorp Company Profile

ESSA Bancorp, Inc operates as a bank holding company for ESSA Bank & Trust that provides a range of financial services to individuals, families, and businesses in Pennsylvania. The company accepts savings accounts, interest bearing demand accounts, checking accounts, money market accounts, club accounts, certificates of deposit and IRAs, and other qualified plan accounts, as well as commercial checking accounts.