Royce & Associates LP Sells 8,978 Shares of Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. $ESQ

Royce & Associates LP reduced its stake in shares of Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ) by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 134,581 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,978 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP owned about 1.58% of Esquire Financial worth $13,735,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in Esquire Financial by 215.3% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 81,087 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,113,000 after purchasing an additional 55,367 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Esquire Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,438,000. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Esquire Financial by 6.8% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 224,198 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,223,000 after buying an additional 14,207 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its holdings in Esquire Financial by 99.2% during the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 25,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,434,000 after acquiring an additional 12,802 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sowell Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Esquire Financial in the third quarter valued at about $1,264,000. 54.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Esquire Financial Stock Up 2.1%

NASDAQ ESQ opened at $103.09 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $107.50 and its 200-day moving average is $102.96. The company has a market capitalization of $883.48 million, a PE ratio of 17.53 and a beta of 0.47. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $68.90 and a 12-month high of $134.82.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.56 by ($0.01). Esquire Financial had a return on equity of 18.72% and a net margin of 30.90%.The business had revenue of $39.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.93 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 5.52 EPS for the current year.

Esquire Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 13th were issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 13th. This is a positive change from Esquire Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Esquire Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 13.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ESQ. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Esquire Financial in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Esquire Financial from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Esquire Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $118.00.

Esquire Financial Company Profile

Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc is a bank holding company whose principal subsidiary, Esquire Bank, specializes in residential mortgage lending and community banking services. Headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, the company operates through multiple distribution channels, including retail branches, wholesale and correspondent lending divisions. Esquire Financial focuses on tailored home financing solutions while maintaining a community-oriented approach to banking.

In its mortgage lending business, Esquire Bank originates and services a range of home loan products, including government-insured mortgages (FHA, VA and USDA) as well as conventional conforming and jumbo loans.