Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) Sets New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $93.09 and last traded at $92.90, with a volume of 30934 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $92.24.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Esquire Financial from $85.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th.

Esquire Financial Trading Up 0.6%

The stock has a market cap of $784.85 million, a PE ratio of 17.97 and a beta of 0.53. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $85.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $81.47.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.03. Esquire Financial had a return on equity of 19.93% and a net margin of 31.58%. The firm had revenue of $33.76 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.71 million. Equities analysts expect that Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Esquire Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th were paid a $0.175 dividend. This represents a $0.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 15th. Esquire Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 13.23%.

Insider Activity at Esquire Financial

In related news, EVP Ari P. Kornhaber sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.51, for a total value of $1,670,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 104,644 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,738,820.44. This represents a 16.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Kevin C. Waterhouse sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.87, for a total value of $251,610.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 86,599 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,263,058.13. This represents a 3.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 18.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ESQ. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Esquire Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,407,000. Royce & Associates LP acquired a new position in shares of Esquire Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $4,640,000. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of Esquire Financial by 215.3% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 81,087 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,113,000 after acquiring an additional 55,367 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Esquire Financial by 25.8% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 209,991 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,829,000 after acquiring an additional 43,076 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ampfield Management L.P. boosted its position in shares of Esquire Financial by 11.9% during the 1st quarter. Ampfield Management L.P. now owns 281,502 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,220,000 after acquiring an additional 29,869 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.66% of the company's stock.

Esquire Financial Company Profile

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.