Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) Director Selig Zises Sells 5,000 Shares of Stock

Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ) Director Selig Zises sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.10, for a total transaction of $525,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 6,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $683,255.10. This trade represents a 43.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Selig Zises also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, March 18th, Selig Zises sold 25,000 shares of Esquire Financial stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.54, for a total transaction of $2,663,500.00.

Esquire Financial Stock Down 0.7%

NASDAQ ESQ opened at $105.45 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $910.78 million, a P/E ratio of 17.93 and a beta of 0.47. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $69.14 and a 52-week high of $134.82. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $107.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $103.45.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $39.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.93 million. Esquire Financial had a net margin of 30.90% and a return on equity of 18.28%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Esquire Financial Increases Dividend

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Esquire Financial

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESQ. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its position in Esquire Financial by 247.8% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 553 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Esquire Financial by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 40,968 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,182,000 after purchasing an additional 1,431 shares in the last quarter. Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. increased its stake in shares of Esquire Financial by 57.6% during the 4th quarter. Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 25,234 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,576,000 after purchasing an additional 9,222 shares in the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Esquire Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $989,000. Finally, Numerai GP LLC lifted its stake in Esquire Financial by 27.4% in the 4th quarter. Numerai GP LLC now owns 9,963 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,017,000 after buying an additional 2,141 shares in the last quarter. 54.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Esquire Financial from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $125.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, March 13th. Weiss Ratings lowered Esquire Financial from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Esquire Financial from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Esquire Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $120.33.

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.