Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) CEO Sells $1,227,300.00 in Stock

Key Points

• CEO Andrew Sagliocca sold 10,000 Esquire Financial shares at an average price of $122.73, generating $1.23 million. His direct ownership fell 3.35% to 288,798 shares.
• Esquire Financial reported quarterly EPS of $1.60, beating estimates of $1.56, while revenue reached $42.13 million. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, representing a 0.7% yield.
• Shares recently traded near $122.68, with analysts maintaining a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $120.33; institutional investors own 54.66% of the stock.

Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ - Get Free Report) CEO Andrew Sagliocca sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.73, for a total transaction of $1,227,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 288,798 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $35,444,178.54. This trade represents a 3.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Esquire Financial Stock Performance

ESQ stock traded down $0.52 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $122.68. 126,851 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 123,348. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $121.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $114.42. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $92.10 and a 52 week high of $134.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.49 billion, a PE ratio of 20.24 and a beta of 0.35.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.56 by $0.04. Esquire Financial had a return on equity of 18.22% and a net margin of 29.30%.The firm had revenue of $42.13 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $41.59 million. As a group, analysts predict that Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 6.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Esquire Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 14th. Esquire Financial's payout ratio is presently 13.20%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Esquire Financial from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Esquire Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $120.33.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Esquire Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESQ. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Esquire Financial in the second quarter worth approximately $39,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in Esquire Financial by 247.8% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 553 shares of the company's stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp purchased a new position in Esquire Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $174,000. Inceptionr LLC bought a new position in shares of Esquire Financial in the 1st quarter worth $212,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new position in shares of Esquire Financial in the 2nd quarter worth $227,000. 54.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Esquire Financial

Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc is the bank holding company for Esquire Bank, a federally chartered community bank headquartered in Jericho, New York. Founded in 2006, Esquire Bank focuses on serving law firms, attorneys, and other professional service businesses, along with small and middle-market companies and individual customers.

The bank offers commercial and consumer banking products, including business and personal deposit accounts, commercial real estate and commercial loans, lines of credit, mortgage loans, and treasury management services.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.