ESSA Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESSA) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

ESSA Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESSA) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 26,400 shares, a growth of 25.7% from the February 13th total of 21,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 25,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.0 days. Approximately 0.3% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ESSA Bancorp

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 in the last quarter. FJ Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. FJ Capital Management LLC now owns 967,168 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $18,860,000 after purchasing an additional 25,176 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new position in shares of ESSA Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth about $109,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in ESSA Bancorp by 44.5% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings 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 in the last quarter. 54.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of ESSA Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock.

ESSA Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of ESSA traded down $0.06 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $18.90. The company had a trading volume of 15,768 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,711. The firm has a market cap of $191.93 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.86 and a beta of 0.40. The business has a fifty day moving average of $20.53 and a 200-day moving average of $19.78. ESSA Bancorp has a 12 month low of $15.29 and a 12 month high of $22.22. 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 (NASDAQ:ESSA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter. ESSA Bancorp had a net margin of 14.83% and a return on equity of 7.27%.

ESSA Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.17%. 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.