Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) Sees Large Volume Increase – What’s Next?

Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ) saw an uptick in trading volume on Thursday . Approximately 70,880 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 31% from the previous session’s volume of 103,464 shares.The stock last traded at $121.4820 and had previously closed at $119.50.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ESQ. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Esquire Financial from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Esquire Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Esquire Financial presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $120.33.

Esquire Financial Stock Up 3.2%

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $112.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $109.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.07 billion, a PE ratio of 20.67 and a beta of 0.39.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $40.46 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $40.76 million. Esquire Financial had a return on equity of 18.30% and a net margin of 29.96%. Equities research analysts forecast that Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 6.7 EPS for the current year.

Esquire Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Esquire Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 13.45%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Esquire Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESQ. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Esquire Financial by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 450,577 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,990,000 after buying an additional 11,699 shares in the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Esquire Financial by 11.6% in the 4th quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 265,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,105,000 after acquiring an additional 27,528 shares in the last quarter. Langdon Equity Partners purchased a new position in Esquire Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $14,609,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Esquire Financial by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 199,909 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,405,000 after acquiring an additional 12,242 shares during the period. Finally, Mawer Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in Esquire Financial by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 800,465 shares of the company’s stock worth $81,703,000 after acquiring an additional 23,692 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.66% of the company’s stock.

Esquire Financial Company 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.