JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has $580,000 Stake in ESSA Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESSA)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of ESSA Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESSA - Free Report) by 104.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,733 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 15,166 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 0.29% of ESSA Bancorp worth $580,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 186,094 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,577,000 after acquiring an additional 4,431 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position 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 buying an additional 554 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in ESSA Bancorp by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 48,508 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $946,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 15.8% during the 4th quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 26,107 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $509,000 after buying an additional 3,568 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its position 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 valued at $264,000 after purchasing an additional 8,895 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.15% of the company's stock.

ESSA Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ESSA traded down $0.10 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $18.85. 6,674 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,580. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $18.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $19.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.94. ESSA Bancorp, Inc. has a twelve month low of $15.82 and a twelve month high of $22.22. The company has a market cap of $191.42 million, a P/E ratio of 10.83 and a beta of 0.47.

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

ESSA Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. ESSA Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is 38.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com began coverage on shares of ESSA Bancorp in a research report on Monday. They set a "hold" rating on the 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.