Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. $ESQ Shares Sold by Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust

Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust reduced its position in Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ) by 19.4% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 18,513 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,455 shares during the quarter. Emerald Mutual Fund Advisers Trust’s holdings in Esquire Financial were worth $1,990,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Esquire Financial Stock Up 1.3%

ESQ opened at $118.71 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $1.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.95 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a 50 day moving average of $112.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $109.42. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $90.57 and a 52-week high of $134.82.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ) last released its quarterly 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $40.76 million. Esquire Financial had a net margin of 29.96% and a return on equity of 18.30%. Research analysts anticipate that Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 6.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Esquire Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Esquire Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.45%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Esquire Financial from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen lowered Esquire Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Esquire Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $120.33.

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.