Short Interest in Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ) Rises By 27.0%

Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ – Get Rating) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 38,600 shares, a growth of 27.0% from the March 31st total of 30,400 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 15,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.6 days. Approximately 0.6% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Separately, Zacks Investment Research raised Esquire Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 27th.

Esquire Financial stock traded down $0.06 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $35.94. 842 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,015. The firm has a market capitalization of $290.25 million, a PE ratio of 15.14 and a beta of 0.97. Esquire Financial has a 12 month low of $22.60 and a 12 month high of $39.08. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $33.57.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 25th. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $17.29 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.10 million. Esquire Financial had a net margin of 28.34% and a return on equity of 14.72%. On average, research analysts expect that Esquire Financial will post 2.94 earnings per share for the current year.

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 16th will be given a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 13th.

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Gator Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Esquire Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $2,164,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its stake in Esquire Financial by 33.7% in the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 117,926 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,380,000 after purchasing an additional 29,734 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Esquire Financial by 158.7% during the fourth quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 48,110 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,516,000 after purchasing an additional 29,516 shares during the period. Maltese Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Esquire Financial by 25.7% during the 3rd quarter. Maltese Capital Management LLC now owns 137,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,929,000 after purchasing an additional 28,019 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Polar Capital Holdings Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Esquire Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $681,000. Institutional investors own 51.20% of the company’s stock.

Esquire Financial Company Profile (Get Rating)

Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Esquire Bank, National Association that provides commercial banking products and services to legal industry and small businesses, and commercial and retail customers in the United States. The company offers checking, savings, money market, and time deposits, as well as certificates of deposit.

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