ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) Share Price Passes Above 200-Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Shares of ESSA Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESSA) crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $17.72 and traded as high as $19.40. ESSA Bancorp shares last traded at $19.24, with a volume of 20,700 shares.

ESSA Bancorp Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $194.94 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.40 and a beta of 0.36. 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 stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $17.72.

ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($0.04). ESSA Bancorp had a return on equity of 7.84% and a net margin of 15.78%. The company had revenue of $16.28 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.29 million.

ESSA Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.12%. ESSA Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.43%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ESSA Bancorp

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ESSA. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in ESSA Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $300,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in ESSA Bancorp by 8.1% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 41,956 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $765,000 after purchasing an additional 3,150 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in ESSA Bancorp by 0.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 441,226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,044,000 after purchasing an additional 2,056 shares during the period. Panagora Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in ESSA Bancorp by 4.8% in the second quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 29,444 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $518,000 after purchasing an additional 1,343 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in ESSA Bancorp by 3.4% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 30,115 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $530,000 after purchasing an additional 977 shares during the last quarter. 54.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About ESSA Bancorp

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.