Selig Zises Sells 25,000 Shares of Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) Stock

Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ) Director Selig Zises sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.54, for a total value of $2,663,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 8,501 shares in the company, valued at approximately $905,696.54. This represents a 74.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

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

• On Thursday, March 19th, Selig Zises sold 5,000 shares of Esquire Financial stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.10, for a total value of $525,500.00.

Esquire Financial Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:ESQ opened at $105.45 on Friday. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $69.14 and a 1-year high of $134.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $911.10 million, a P/E ratio of 17.93 and a beta of 0.47. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $107.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $103.50.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.56 by ($0.01). Esquire Financial had a net margin of 30.90% and a return on equity of 18.28%. The business had revenue of $39.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.93 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 5.52 EPS for the current year.

Esquire Financial Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Esquire Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. Raymond James Financial upgraded Esquire Financial from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $125.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective 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. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Esquire Financial from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday. One research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $120.33.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Esquire Financial

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

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.