Rafferty Asset Management LLC Buys Shares of 9,958 Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. $ESQ

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC has acquired a new stake in Esquire Financial Holdings valued at approximately $751,000, purchasing nearly 10,000 shares during the first quarter of the year.
• Insider trading has seen significant activity, with Director Selig Zises selling 17,000 shares valued at around $1.7 million, representing a notable decrease in his ownership of the stock.
• Esquire Financial's stock has received mixed reviews from analysts, with a downgrade from a "hold" to a "sell" rating, while it maintains a consensus price target of $100.50.

Rafferty Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 9,958 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $751,000. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.12% of Esquire Financial as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. lifted its stake in Esquire Financial by 85.6% during the first quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 779,889 shares of the company's stock worth $58,788,000 after purchasing an additional 359,677 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Esquire Financial by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 402,688 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,355,000 after purchasing an additional 14,958 shares during the period. Ampfield Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Esquire Financial by 11.9% in the 1st quarter. Ampfield Management L.P. now owns 281,502 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,220,000 after purchasing an additional 29,869 shares during the period. GW&K Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Esquire Financial by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 224,941 shares of the company's stock valued at $16,956,000 after buying an additional 4,545 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Esquire Financial by 25.8% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 209,991 shares of the company's stock worth $15,829,000 after purchasing an additional 43,076 shares during the period. 54.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $110.00 target price (up from $102.00) on shares of Esquire Financial in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Wall Street Zen cut Esquire Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $100.50.

Esquire Financial Trading Down 0.9%

Esquire Financial stock traded down $0.87 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $95.38. The company had a trading volume of 46,755 shares, compared to its average volume of 70,752. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $58.69 and a 1-year high of $106.11. The stock has a market cap of $814.55 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.60 and a beta of 0.57. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $97.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $87.67.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.38. Esquire Financial had a net margin of 30.96% and a return on equity of 18.87%. The business had revenue of ($24.94) million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $28.26 million. As a group, analysts forecast that Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Esquire Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th were given a dividend of $0.175 per share. This represents a $0.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. Esquire Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 12.92%.

Insider Activity

In other Esquire Financial news, Director Joseph Melohn sold 11,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.90, for a total transaction of $1,098,900.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 137,857 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,771,914.30. This represents a 7.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Selig Zises sold 17,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.71, for a total transaction of $1,695,070.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 21,001 shares in the company, valued at $2,094,009.71. The trade was a 44.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,326 shares of company stock worth $3,403,470 over the last 90 days. 18.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Esquire Financial 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.