Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. $ESQ Shares Acquired by Vanguard Group Inc.

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. has increased its stake in Esquire Financial Holdings by 3.9%, now owning approximately 4.78% of the company, which is valued at around $30.35 million.
• Esquire Financial's stock ratings have been mixed, with Wall Street Zen downgrading it to a "sell" while Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its price target to $110.00, indicating ongoing market variability.
• Insiders have sold a total of 34,326 shares of Esquire Financial stock worth over $3.4 million in the last 90 days, leading to a significant decrease in their ownership percentages.

Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ - Free Report) by 3.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 402,688 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 14,958 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 4.78% of Esquire Financial worth $30,355,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Esquire Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $545,000. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Esquire Financial by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 11,173 shares of the company's stock valued at $888,000 after buying an additional 865 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in shares of Esquire Financial by 151.0% during 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 last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD bought a new stake in shares of Esquire Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $224,000. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Esquire Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $300,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.66% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Insider Transactions at Esquire Financial

In related news, Director Selig Zises sold 17,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.71, for a total transaction of $1,695,070.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 21,001 shares in the company, valued at $2,094,009.71. This trade represents a 44.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Joseph Melohn sold 1,326 shares of Esquire Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.00, for a total value of $132,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 136,531 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,653,100. The trade was a 0.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,326 shares of company stock valued at $3,403,470 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 18.00% of the company's stock.

Esquire Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ESQ traded down $1.85 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $96.25. 65,961 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 70,752. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $57.00 and a 1 year high of $106.11. The company has a market cap of $821.98 million, a P/E ratio of 17.76 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $97.50 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $87.62.

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

Esquire Financial Dividend Announcement

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

About Esquire Financial

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.