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

Analysts at StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday. The firm set a “hold” rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

ESSA Bancorp Stock Performance

ESSA Bancorp stock opened at $18.97 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $192.64 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.90 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. ESSA Bancorp has a 12-month low of $15.82 and a 12-month high of $22.22.

ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.03). ESSA Bancorp had a return on equity of 7.27% and a net margin of 14.83%. The company had revenue of $16.23 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.19 million.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ESSA Bancorp

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. bought a new stake in ESSA Bancorp during the 1st quarter worth about $3,722,000. Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 12,672 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $247,000 after buying an additional 1,107 shares during the period. FJ Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. FJ Capital Management LLC now owns 967,168 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $18,860,000 after buying an additional 25,176 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in ESSA Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $109,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in ESSA Bancorp by 44.5% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 12,118 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $236,000 after acquiring an additional 3,731 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.