ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) Coverage Initiated at StockNews.com

Investment analysts at StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) in a research note issued on Wednesday. The brokerage set a “hold” rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

ESSA Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ ESSA opened at $19.31 on Wednesday. ESSA Bancorp has a one year low of $15.29 and a one year high of $22.22. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $20.53 and a 200 day moving average of $19.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.94. The company has a market capitalization of $196.09 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.10 and a beta of 0.40.

ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 7.27%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ESSA Bancorp

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. FJ Capital Management LLC raised its holdings 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 during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in ESSA Bancorp by 123.3% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 37,898 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $739,000 after purchasing an additional 20,930 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in ESSA Bancorp by 104.1% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 29,733 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $580,000 after purchasing an additional 15,166 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in ESSA Bancorp by 184.2% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 13,723 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 8,895 shares during the period. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its holdings in ESSA Bancorp by 51.8% during the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 22,539 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $433,000 after buying an additional 7,696 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.15% of the company’s stock.

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.