Vanguard Group Inc. Has $30.83 Million Holdings in Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ)

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ - Free Report) by 5.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 387,730 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 21,266 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 4.66% of Esquire Financial worth $30,825,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ampfield Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Esquire Financial by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Ampfield Management L.P. now owns 251,633 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,005,000 after acquiring an additional 24,773 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Esquire Financial by 16.8% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 166,915 shares of the company's stock worth $13,270,000 after buying an additional 23,998 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Esquire Financial by 161.7% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 23,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,532,000 after buying an additional 14,521 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Esquire Financial by 8.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 144,344 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,413,000 after buying an additional 11,345 shares during the period. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Esquire Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $657,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Esquire Financial

In other Esquire Financial news, Director Richard T. Powers sold 1,427 shares of the 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 transaction, the director now owns 58,997 shares in the company, valued at $5,132,149.03. This trade represents a 2.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Selig Zises sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.59, for a total transaction of $1,551,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 35,501 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,754,522.59. The trade was a 36.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 18.90% of the company's stock.

Esquire Financial Trading Up 1.3 %

NASDAQ ESQ traded up $1.05 on Friday, reaching $80.56. The stock had a trading volume of 50,286 shares, compared to its average volume of 46,228. The company has a market capitalization of $679.28 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.61 and a beta of 0.52. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $44.55 and a 1 year high of $90.18. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $76.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $76.19.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $1.37 earnings per share 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%. On average, analysts anticipate that Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Esquire Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.175 per share. This represents a $0.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. This is an increase from Esquire Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Esquire Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 13.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.