Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ) Shares Purchased by Horizon Investment Services LLC

Horizon Investment Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ) by 24.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 33,389 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,572 shares during the quarter. Horizon Investment Services LLC owned about 0.40% of Esquire Financial worth $2,654,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of Esquire Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $54,000. FMR LLC boosted its position in Esquire Financial by 14.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,115 shares of the company’s stock valued at $138,000 after buying an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P bought a new stake in Esquire Financial during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $215,000. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Esquire Financial during the fourth quarter worth $218,000. Finally, Delphi Management Inc. MA grew its stake in shares of Esquire Financial by 33.8% during the fourth quarter. Delphi Management Inc. MA now owns 2,776 shares of the company’s stock valued at $221,000 after purchasing an additional 701 shares during the last quarter. 54.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Esquire Financial Price Performance

Esquire Financial stock opened at $75.06 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $79.84 and a 200-day moving average of $74.53. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $44.45 and a 1 year high of $90.18. The company has a market capitalization of $632.91 million, a P/E ratio of 14.55 and a beta of 0.78.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.38 by ($0.01). Esquire Financial had a net margin of 31.58% and a return on equity of 19.93%. Equities analysts anticipate that Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 5.52 EPS for the current year.

Esquire Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.175 per share. This is a positive change from Esquire Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Esquire Financial’s payout ratio is 13.57%.

Insider Activity at Esquire Financial

In related news, Director Richard T. Powers sold 1,427 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.99, for a total transaction of $124,134.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 58,997 shares in the company, valued at $5,132,149.03. This represents a 2.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Selig Zises sold 20,000 shares of Esquire Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.59, for a total value of $1,551,800.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 35,501 shares in the company, valued at $2,754,522.59. This represents a 36.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 18.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on ESQ shares. Raymond James lowered shares of Esquire Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Esquire Financial from $85.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $85.00 price target (up from $80.00) on shares of Esquire Financial in a research note on Monday, January 27th.

Esquire Financial 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.