Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) Raised to Strong-Buy at Raymond James Financial

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) was upgraded by research analysts at Raymond James Financial from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued on Friday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm presently has a $125.00 target price on the stock. Raymond James Financial’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 13.65% from the company’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on ESQ. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Esquire Financial from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Wall Street Zen lowered Esquire Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Esquire Financial from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $120.33.

Esquire Financial Stock Performance

Esquire Financial stock opened at $109.99 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $107.18 and its 200-day moving average price is $103.21. The stock has a market cap of $942.17 million, a P/E ratio of 18.71 and a beta of 0.47. Esquire Financial has a fifty-two week low of $69.14 and a fifty-two week high of $134.82.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $39.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.93 million. Esquire Financial had a return on equity of 18.72% and a net margin of 30.90%. On average, analysts predict that Esquire Financial will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Langdon Equity Partners bought a new stake in shares of Esquire Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $14,609,000. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in Esquire Financial by 215.3% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 81,087 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,113,000 after acquiring an additional 55,367 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in Esquire Financial by 86.5% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 69,687 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,113,000 after acquiring an additional 32,326 shares during the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Esquire Financial by 11.6% in the 4th quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 265,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,105,000 after purchasing an additional 27,528 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Esquire Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,438,000. 54.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

More Esquire Financial News

Here are the key news stories impacting Esquire Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Esquire agreed to acquire Illinois‑based Signature Bancorporation in an all‑stock transaction valued at about $348.4 million, expanding Esquire into the Chicago commercial‑banking market and adding a large litigation/legal vertical that management says will drive growth and diversification. ESQ to Acquire Signature Bancorporation (PR Newswire)
• Positive Sentiment: Major media/regional coverage highlights deal scale and strategic fit (Chicago market entry and legal‑services client expansion), reinforcing investor confidence in the acquisition rationale. Esquire entering Chicago market with $348M merger (BizJournals)
• Positive Sentiment: Raymond James upgraded ESQ from Market Perform to Strong Buy and set a $125 price target, signaling analyst support for the accretive potential of the Signature deal and providing a visible upside catalyst for investors. Raymond James upgrades Esquire to Strong Buy (StreetInsider)
• Neutral Sentiment: Management held an M&A call and provided a slideshow/transcript with deal details and integration plans — useful for modeling expected cost saves, revenue cross‑sell and timing of accretion. Investors should review the transcript/slideshow for assumptions. ESQ M&A Call Transcript (Seeking Alpha)
• Neutral Sentiment: Market technicals: volume is above average and the shares are trading higher on the news; watch integration execution, share issuance impact (all‑stock deal) and modeled EPS accretion over the next 12–24 months.
• Negative Sentiment: Investor‑rights firm Halper Sadeh launched an investigation into whether the merger is fair to Esquire shareholders, raising the possibility of litigation or delays that could complicate deal timing or terms. Halper Sadeh investigating ESQ merger (BusinessWire)

About Esquire Financial

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.