Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. $ESQ Holdings Raised by Mawer Investment Management Ltd.

Key Points

• Mawer Investment Management increased its stake in Esquire Financial by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 800,465 shares worth about $81.7 million, or roughly 9.34% of the company.
• Esquire Financial reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, posting EPS of $1.58 versus estimates of $1.52, while revenue came in slightly below consensus at $40.46 million.
• The stock has drawn mixed but generally positive analyst sentiment, with a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $120.33; the company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share.

Mawer Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ - Free Report) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 800,465 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 23,692 shares during the quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. owned approximately 9.34% of Esquire Financial worth $81,703,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Esquire Financial during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in shares of Esquire Financial by 352.5% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 810 shares of the company's stock worth $77,000 after purchasing an additional 631 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new position in shares of Esquire Financial during the 3rd quarter worth $93,000. Comerica Bank increased its stake in shares of Esquire Financial by 50.2% during the 3rd quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 1,289 shares of the company's stock worth $132,000 after purchasing an additional 431 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its stake in shares of Esquire Financial by 376.6% during the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 1,606 shares of the company's stock worth $163,000 after purchasing an additional 1,269 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.66% of the company's stock.

Esquire Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ESQ opened at $108.45 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $109.31 and a 200-day moving average of $106.80. The company has a market capitalization of $936.90 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.23 and a beta of 0.39. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $87.54 and a 52 week high of $134.82.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.52 by $0.06. Esquire Financial had a net margin of 29.96% and a return on equity of 18.30%. The company had revenue of $40.46 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $40.76 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 6.35 EPS for the current year.

Esquire Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. Esquire Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Esquire Financial from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $125.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Esquire Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Esquire Financial from a "buy (a-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $120.33.

Insider Activity

In other Esquire Financial news, Director Richard T. Powers sold 2,308 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.83, for a total value of $241,947.64. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 58,233 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,104,565.39. This trade represents a 3.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction of $2,663,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 8,501 shares of the company's stock, valued at $905,696.54. The trade was a 74.62% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 32,308 shares of company stock valued at $3,430,948 over the last three months. 18.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.

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