Foundations Investment Advisors LLC Buys 4,194 Shares of Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ)

Key Points

• Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Esquire Financial Holdings by 152.5%, acquiring an additional 4,194 shares to own a total of 6,945 shares, valued at approximately $524,000.
• Esquire Financial recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.175 per share, with a dividend yield of 0.7%, payable on September 2nd to stockholders of record as of August 15th.
• Research analysts forecast a price objective increase for Esquire Financial shares, with Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raising their target from $102.00 to $110.00, while Wall Street Zen upgraded its rating from "sell" to "hold."

Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ - Free Report) by 152.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,945 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,194 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC owned 0.08% of Esquire Financial worth $524,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ESQ. Versant Capital Management Inc bought a new position in Esquire Financial in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in Esquire Financial in the first quarter valued at $51,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in Esquire Financial by 151.0% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 788 shares of the company's stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 474 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in shares of Esquire Financial during the 1st quarter worth about $106,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Esquire Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $207,000. 54.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Esquire Financial news, Director Selig Zises sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.38, for a total value of $476,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 29,501 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,813,805.38. This represents a 14.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 18.00% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Esquire Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $110.00 target price (up previously from $102.00) on shares of Esquire Financial in a report on Friday, July 25th.

Esquire Financial Price Performance

NASDAQ:ESQ traded up $0.04 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $93.48. The stock had a trading volume of 22,002 shares, compared to its average volume of 93,309. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $85.96. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $54.49 and a one year high of $106.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $791.03 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.24 and a beta of 0.57.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.38. The firm had revenue of ($24.94) million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $28.26 million. Esquire Financial had a net margin of 30.96% and a return on equity of 19.33%. Equities research analysts anticipate 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 will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $0.175 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $0.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Esquire Financial's payout ratio is presently 12.92%.

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.