Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ) Position Increased by Cetera Investment Advisers

Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ) by 11.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,074 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,054 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers’ holdings in Esquire Financial were worth $759,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ESQ. Royce & Associates LP bought a new stake in shares of Esquire Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $4,640,000. Ampfield Management L.P. raised its stake in Esquire Financial by 11.9% during the 1st quarter. Ampfield Management L.P. now owns 281,502 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,220,000 after acquiring an additional 29,869 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Esquire Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $545,000. Bosun Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Esquire Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $487,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Esquire Financial by 16.7% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 40,139 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,026,000 after acquiring an additional 5,745 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 54.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Esquire Financial

In other news, Director Selig Zises sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.38, for a total value of $476,900.00. Following the sale, the director owned 29,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,813,805.38. The trade was a 14.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 18.00% of the company’s stock.

Esquire Financial Price Performance

Shares of Esquire Financial stock opened at $97.49 on Friday. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $56.13 and a 1-year high of $106.11. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $95.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $86.53. The company has a market capitalization of $832.56 million, a P/E ratio of 17.99 and a beta of 0.57.

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

Esquire Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $0.175 dividend. 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 payout ratio is currently 12.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Esquire Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $110.00 target price (up previously from $102.00) on shares of Esquire Financial in a research note on Friday, July 25th.

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.