Tabor Asset Management LP Buys Shares of 39,006 ESSA Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESSA)

Tabor Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in ESSA Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESSA - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 39,006 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $735,000. Tabor Asset Management LP owned 0.38% of ESSA Bancorp at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its holdings in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 27.8% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 4,922 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 1,072 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in shares of ESSA Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $109,000. Chancellor Financial Group WB LP acquired a new stake in shares of ESSA Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $214,000. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 44.5% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised 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 valued at $247,000 after acquiring an additional 1,107 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.15% of the company's stock.

ESSA Bancorp Trading Up 2.6%

ESSA traded up $0.53 during trading on Thursday, reaching $20.63. 346,852 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 24,222. The stock has a market cap of $209.34 million, a P/E ratio of 13.31 and a beta of 0.43. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $19.27 and a 200 day moving average of $19.44. ESSA Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $15.82 and a 52 week high of $22.22.

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 the consensus estimate of $0.43 by ($0.03). ESSA Bancorp had a return on equity of 6.84% and a net margin of 13.20%. 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 firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.91%. ESSA Bancorp's payout ratio is 38.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen began coverage on ESSA Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a "hold" rating on the stock.

ESSA Bancorp 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.