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

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

ESSA Bancorp Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ ESSA opened at $19.04 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $20.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.82. The company has a market capitalization of $193.35 million, a PE ratio of 10.94 and a beta of 0.40. ESSA Bancorp has a 12-month low of $15.29 and a 12-month high of $22.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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%.

Institutional Trading of ESSA Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in ESSA Bancorp by 9.6% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 12,672 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $247,000 after acquiring an additional 1,107 shares during the last quarter. FJ Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. FJ Capital Management LLC now owns 967,168 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,860,000 after purchasing an additional 25,176 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in ESSA Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at $109,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in ESSA Bancorp by 44.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 12,118 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $236,000 after buying an additional 3,731 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in ESSA Bancorp by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 69,810 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,361,000 after buying an additional 2,289 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.