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

Equities researchers at StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday. The firm set a “hold” rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

ESSA Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of ESSA opened at $18.96 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $20.53 and its 200 day moving average is $19.78. ESSA Bancorp has a 12-month low of $15.29 and a 12-month high of $22.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock has a market cap of $192.54 million, a P/E ratio of 10.90 and a beta of 0.40.

ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter. ESSA Bancorp had a net margin of 14.83% and a return on equity of 7.27%.

Institutional Trading of ESSA Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ESSA. FJ Capital Management LLC grew its position in ESSA Bancorp by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. FJ Capital Management LLC now owns 967,168 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $18,860,000 after purchasing an additional 25,176 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 123.3% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 37,898 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $739,000 after buying an additional 20,930 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 104.1% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 29,733 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $580,000 after acquiring an additional 15,166 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 184.2% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 13,723 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $264,000 after acquiring an additional 8,895 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in ESSA Bancorp by 51.8% during the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 22,539 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $433,000 after acquiring an additional 7,696 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.15% of the company’s stock.

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.