Rafferty Asset Management LLC Acquires 11,055 Shares of Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. $ESQ

Rafferty Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ) by 141.5% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 18,866 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,055 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Esquire Financial were worth $1,925,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Esquire Financial by 215.3% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 81,087 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,113,000 after buying an additional 55,367 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Esquire Financial in the second quarter worth $2,438,000. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Esquire Financial by 6.8% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 224,198 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,223,000 after acquiring an additional 14,207 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its stake in shares of Esquire Financial by 99.2% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 25,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,434,000 after acquiring an additional 12,802 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sowell Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Esquire Financial during the third quarter valued at $1,264,000. 54.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Esquire Financial Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of ESQ stock opened at $101.65 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $107.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $102.99. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $68.90 and a 52 week high of $134.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $871.14 million, a PE ratio of 17.29 and a beta of 0.47.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by ($0.01). Esquire Financial had a net margin of 30.90% and a return on equity of 18.72%. The company had revenue of $39.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.93 million. Analysts anticipate that Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Esquire Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 13th were paid a $0.20 dividend. This is an increase from Esquire Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 13th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Esquire Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ESQ has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Esquire Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Esquire Financial from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Esquire Financial from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Esquire Financial has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $118.00.

Esquire Financial Profile

Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc is a bank holding company whose principal subsidiary, Esquire Bank, specializes in residential mortgage lending and community banking services. Headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, the company operates through multiple distribution channels, including retail branches, wholesale and correspondent lending divisions. Esquire Financial focuses on tailored home financing solutions while maintaining a community-oriented approach to banking.

In its mortgage lending business, Esquire Bank originates and services a range of home loan products, including government-insured mortgages (FHA, VA and USDA) as well as conventional conforming and jumbo loans.