Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) Shares Down 3.5% on Disappointing Earnings

Shares of Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ) dropped 3.5% on Friday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as low as $82.36 and last traded at $83.15. Approximately 19,290 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 74% from the average daily volume of 72,886 shares. The stock had previously closed at $86.12.

The company reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by ($0.01). Esquire Financial had a net margin of 31.38% and a return on equity of 19.53%.

Esquire Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. Esquire Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.07%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Esquire Financial from $72.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $75.00 price target (up from $72.00) on shares of Esquire Financial in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Raymond James downgraded Esquire Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday.

Insider Buying and Selling at Esquire Financial

In related news, Director Selig Zises sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.77, for a total transaction of $614,160.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 62,601 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,805,878.77. This trade represents a 11.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph Melohn sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.15, for a total value of $237,450.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,683 shares in the company, valued at $291,509.45. This trade represents a 44.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 18.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Esquire Financial

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Esquire Financial by 36.6% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 798 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in Esquire Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Copeland Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Esquire Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at $64,000. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Esquire Financial by 14.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,115 shares of the company’s stock valued at $138,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Esquire Financial during the third quarter worth approximately $151,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.66% of the company’s stock.

Esquire Financial Trading Down 2.6 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $698.19 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.88 and a beta of 0.73. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $79.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $67.48.

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.