Elizabeth Park Capital Advisors Ltd. Trims Stock Position in Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. $ESQ

Elizabeth Park Capital Advisors Ltd. cut its holdings in Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ) by 31.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 33,210 shares of the company’s stock after selling 15,000 shares during the quarter. Esquire Financial makes up about 2.3% of Elizabeth Park Capital Advisors Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Elizabeth Park Capital Advisors Ltd.’s holdings in Esquire Financial were worth $2,503,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ESQ. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its position in shares of Esquire Financial by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 15,275 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,214,000 after buying an additional 1,095 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Esquire Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $545,000. Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of Esquire Financial by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 11,173 shares of the company’s stock worth $888,000 after buying an additional 865 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in shares of Esquire Financial by 151.0% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 788 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 474 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD purchased a new stake in shares of Esquire Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $224,000. 54.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Esquire Financial news, Director Joseph Melohn sold 11,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.90, for a total transaction of $1,098,900.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 137,857 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,771,914.30. This represents a 7.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Selig Zises sold 17,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.71, for a total transaction of $1,695,070.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 21,001 shares in the company, valued at $2,094,009.71. This represents a 44.74% 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 worth $3,403,470 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 18.00% of the company’s stock.

Esquire Financial Price Performance

Shares of Esquire Financial stock opened at $100.49 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $858.18 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.54 and a beta of 0.57. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $96.74 and its 200 day moving average is $87.13. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $57.00 and a 1 year high of $106.11.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38. The company had revenue of ($24.94) million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.26 million. Esquire Financial had a net margin of 30.96% and a return on equity of 18.87%. On average, equities analysts expect that Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 5.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Esquire Financial Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ESQ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $110.00 target price (up from $102.00) on shares of Esquire Financial in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of 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 given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Esquire Financial has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $100.50.

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.