Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ) saw strong trading volume on Friday . 40,183 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 13% from the previous session’s volume of 35,607 shares.The stock last traded at $78.73 and had previously closed at $78.10.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on ESQ shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Esquire Financial from $72.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $75.00 price target (up from $72.00) on shares of Esquire Financial in a research note on Friday, October 25th.

Esquire Financial Stock Performance

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $75.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $64.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $661.77 million, a P/E ratio of 16.00 and a beta of 0.74.

Esquire Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.75%. Esquire Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.07%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Esquire Financial

In related news, Director Rena Nigam acquired 640 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $77.50 per share, for a total transaction of $49,600.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,867 shares in the company, valued at $144,692.50. This trade represents a 52.16 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Selig Zises sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 62,601 shares in the company, valued at $4,805,878.77. This represents a 11.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 18.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Esquire Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in Esquire Financial by 21.7% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 122,222 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,818,000 after acquiring an additional 21,833 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of Esquire Financial in the second quarter worth $926,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Esquire Financial by 9.3% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 202,847 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,655,000 after purchasing an additional 17,333 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in Esquire Financial by 79.8% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 36,058 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,351,000 after purchasing an additional 16,007 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Esquire Financial by 161.7% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 23,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,532,000 after buying an additional 14,521 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.66% of the company’s stock.

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.