Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 13,115 Shares of Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. $ESQ

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its stake in Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. by 23.6% during the first quarter, now holding 42,561 shares worth $3.2 million.
• Esquire Financial recently reported $1.38 earnings per share, meeting analyst expectations, with a projected EPS of 5.52 for the current fiscal year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.175, set to be distributed on September 2nd, representing an annual yield of 0.7%.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its stake in Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ - Free Report) by 23.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 42,561 shares of the company's stock after selling 13,115 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.50% of Esquire Financial worth $3,208,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESQ. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its holdings in Esquire Financial by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 15,275 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,214,000 after purchasing an additional 1,095 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Esquire Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $545,000. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Esquire Financial by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 11,173 shares of the company's stock valued at $888,000 after purchasing an additional 865 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in Esquire Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $228,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Esquire Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $207,000. 54.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ESQ has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a "market perform" rating and set 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 downgraded Esquire Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report 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's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Esquire Financial currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $100.50.

Esquire Financial Trading Down 2.2%

Esquire Financial stock traded down $2.20 on Friday, reaching $98.10. 70,123 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 74,430. The stock has a market cap of $837.77 million, a PE ratio of 18.10 and a beta of 0.57. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $57.00 and a twelve month high of $106.11. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $97.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $87.42.

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

Esquire Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $0.175 dividend. This represents a $0.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Esquire Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.92%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Selig Zises sold 17,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.71, for a total value of $1,695,070.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 21,001 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,094,009.71. This trade represents a 44.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph Melohn sold 1,326 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total transaction of $132,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 136,531 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,653,100. The trade was a 0.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 34,326 shares of company stock valued at $3,403,470. 18.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.