Beese Fulmer Investment Management Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in ESSA Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESSA)

Beese Fulmer Investment Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of ESSA Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESSA) by 9.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 15,397 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,700 shares during the period. Beese Fulmer Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in ESSA Bancorp were worth $300,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ESSA. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 0.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 115,996 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,229,000 after buying an additional 554 shares during the period. Northeast Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in ESSA Bancorp by 4.5% during the third quarter. Northeast Financial Group Inc. now owns 16,346 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $314,000 after buying an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in ESSA Bancorp by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 47,608 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $915,000 after purchasing an additional 2,412 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in ESSA Bancorp by 2.4% in 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 purchasing an additional 4,431 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its position in ESSA Bancorp by 51.8% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 22,539 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $433,000 after purchasing an additional 7,696 shares during the period. 54.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ESSA Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of ESSA opened at $21.80 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $221.27 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.53 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The business’s 50 day moving average is $20.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.28. ESSA Bancorp, Inc. has a 52-week low of $15.29 and a 52-week high of $21.80.

ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. ESSA Bancorp had a net margin of 14.83% and a return on equity of 7.33%.

ESSA Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. ESSA Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.48%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com started coverage on ESSA Bancorp in a research report on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company.

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.