Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) EVP Sells $2,563,000.00 in Stock

Key Points

• Insider sale: EVP Ari Kornhaber sold 20,000 shares for approximately $2.56 million, reducing his stake by 16.7% while retaining nearly 99,800 shares.
• Strong quarterly performance: Esquire Financial reported EPS of $2.12, beating estimates of $1.89, while revenue of $61.39 million also exceeded expectations.
• Positive investor outlook: Zacks Research upgraded the stock to “strong-buy,” and the company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, equivalent to a 0.6% annualized yield.

Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ - Get Free Report) EVP Ari Kornhaber sold 20,000 shares of Esquire Financial stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.15, for a total value of $2,563,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 99,792 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,788,344.80. The trade was a 16.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Esquire Financial Stock Performance

Esquire Financial stock traded down $1.48 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $126.22. 60,234 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 126,101. The company's fifty day moving average is $119.11 and its 200-day moving average is $114.29. The firm has a market cap of $1.53 billion, a PE ratio of 20.96 and a beta of 0.40. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $92.10 and a 52 week high of $134.82.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.23. Esquire Financial had a return on equity of 21.49% and a net margin of 26.92%. The company had revenue of $61.39 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.93 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 7.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Esquire Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 13th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Esquire Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.20%.

Institutional Trading of Esquire Financial

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Esquire Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $71,659,000. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Esquire Financial during the second quarter worth $44,001,000. Copeland Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Esquire Financial by 14.7% in the 1st quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 304,647 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,750,000 after buying an additional 39,097 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Esquire Financial by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 200,807 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,586,000 after purchasing an additional 4,825 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of Esquire Financial by 418.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 87,530 shares of the company's stock worth $9,409,000 after acquiring an additional 70,646 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 54.66% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on ESQ. Zacks Research upgraded Esquire Financial from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Esquire Financial in a report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Esquire Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Esquire Financial from a "buy (a-)" rating to a "buy (a)" rating in a report on Tuesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Strong Buy" and an average target price of $122.50.

Key Esquire Financial News

Here are the key news stories impacting Esquire Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade: Zacks Research upgraded ESQ from “hold” to “strong-buy,” providing a potential near-term catalyst. The upgrade follows positive earnings-estimate revisions. Zacks Research upgrade and earnings estimates article
• Positive Sentiment: Strong quarterly results: Esquire Financial reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of $2.12 per share, exceeding the $1.89 analyst consensus, while revenue of $61.39 million also topped estimates of $59.93 million. The earnings beat supports expectations for continued earnings momentum. Esquire Financial third-quarter earnings article
• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly dividend declared: The company declared a $0.20-per-share dividend payable December 1 to shareholders of record November 13. The annualized payout is $0.80 per share, representing a yield of approximately 0.6%. Esquire Financial quarterly dividend announcement
• Negative Sentiment: Executive insider sale: EVP Ari Kornhaber sold 20,000 shares for approximately $2.56 million, reducing his holdings by 16.7%. Although he still owns nearly 100,000 shares, the sizable sale could raise concern about insider confidence or encourage short-term profit-taking. SEC filing on insider share sale

Esquire Financial Company Profile

Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc is the bank holding company for Esquire Bank, a federally chartered community bank headquartered in Jericho, New York. Esquire Bank primarily serves law firms, attorneys, and other professional-service businesses, as well as small and middle-market companies, entrepreneurs, and individuals.

The bank provides commercial banking products and services that include business checking and savings accounts, commercial loans, lines of credit, commercial real estate financing, construction lending, and small business lending.

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