Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Boosts Position in ESSA Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESSA)

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its stake in ESSA Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESSA) by 15.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 26,107 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,568 shares during the quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings in ESSA Bancorp were worth $509,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ESSA. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 184.2% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 13,723 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $264,000 after acquiring an additional 8,895 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 126.5% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 14,567 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $280,000 after acquiring an additional 8,136 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 5.3% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 47,608 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $915,000 after acquiring an additional 2,412 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 0.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 115,996 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,229,000 after acquiring an additional 554 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 4,431 shares during the last quarter. 54.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com began coverage on ESSA Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company.

ESSA Bancorp Stock Performance

ESSA Bancorp stock opened at $18.88 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $20.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.79. ESSA Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $15.29 and a 52 week high of $22.22. 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 market capitalization of $191.73 million, a P/E ratio of 10.85 and a beta of 0.40.

ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) last posted 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 return on equity of 7.27% and a net margin of 14.83%.

ESSA Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. ESSA Bancorp’s payout ratio is 34.48%.

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.