Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) Downgraded to Sell Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note published on Saturday.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on ESQ. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Esquire Financial from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Esquire Financial in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $118.00.

Esquire Financial Price Performance

ESQ opened at $100.98 on Friday. Esquire Financial has a fifty-two week low of $68.90 and a fifty-two week high of $134.82. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $107.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $102.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $865.40 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.17 and a beta of 0.46.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.56 by ($0.01). Esquire Financial had a net margin of 30.90% and a return on equity of 18.72%. The business had revenue of $39.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.93 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Esquire Financial will post 5.52 EPS for the current year.

Esquire Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. This is a positive change from Esquire Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Esquire Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.61%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Esquire Financial

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Esquire Financial by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 40,968 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,182,000 after buying an additional 1,431 shares during the period. Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in Esquire Financial by 57.6% during the fourth quarter. Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 25,234 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,576,000 after acquiring an additional 9,222 shares in the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new position in Esquire Financial during the fourth quarter worth $989,000. Numerai GP LLC grew its holdings in Esquire Financial by 27.4% in the fourth quarter. Numerai GP LLC now owns 9,963 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,017,000 after purchasing an additional 2,141 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in Esquire Financial by 100.9% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 28,182 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,877,000 after purchasing an additional 14,156 shares in the last quarter. 54.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Esquire Financial

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.