ESSA Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESSA) COO Peter A. Gray Purchases 1,000 Shares

ESSA Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESSA) COO Peter A. Gray acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $14.85 per share, with a total value of $14,850.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief operating officer now owns 28,713 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $426,388.05. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

ESSA Bancorp Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of ESSA stock opened at $14.95 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $155.48 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.36 and a beta of 0.29. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $16.11 and a 200 day moving average of $15.84. ESSA Bancorp, Inc. has a 52 week low of $12.79 and a 52 week high of $21.80.

ESSA Bancorp (NASDAQ:ESSA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.06. ESSA Bancorp had a net margin of 22.87% and a return on equity of 9.13%. The business had revenue of $17.18 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.52 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that ESSA Bancorp, Inc. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

ESSA Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 29th. Investors of record on Saturday, September 16th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 14th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.01%. ESSA Bancorp’s payout ratio is 29.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com began coverage on ESSA Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “hold” rating for the company.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ESSA Bancorp

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Andesa Financial Management Inc. grew its position in shares of ESSA Bancorp by 100.0% in the 1st quarter. Andesa Financial Management Inc. now owns 60,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $512,000 after buying an additional 30,000 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in ESSA Bancorp by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 372,608 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,776,000 after purchasing an additional 2,024 shares during the period. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in ESSA Bancorp by 2,577.4% in the 4th quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 3,079 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 2,964 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its position in ESSA Bancorp by 5,505.1% during the 2nd quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 3,307 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 3,248 shares during the last quarter. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System bought a new stake in ESSA Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at about $43,000. Institutional investors own 44.24% 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.