Alliancebernstein L.P. Has $9.18 Million Stake in Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ)

Alliancebernstein L.P. cut its stake in shares of Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ - Free Report) by 17.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 115,424 shares of the company's stock after selling 24,902 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned 1.39% of Esquire Financial worth $9,176,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Esquire Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,407,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Esquire Financial by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 387,730 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,825,000 after purchasing an additional 21,266 shares during the last quarter. Ampfield Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Esquire Financial by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. Ampfield Management L.P. now owns 251,633 shares of the company's stock worth $20,005,000 after buying an additional 24,773 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Esquire Financial by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 182,259 shares of the company's stock worth $11,887,000 after buying an additional 6,025 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Esquire Financial by 16.8% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 166,915 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,270,000 after buying an additional 23,998 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 54.66% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ESQ has been the topic of several research reports. Raymond James lowered shares of Esquire Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Esquire Financial from $85.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $85.00 price objective (up previously from $80.00) on shares of Esquire Financial in a report on Monday, January 27th.

Esquire Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Esquire Financial stock traded down $0.13 on Wednesday, reaching $78.72. 1,752 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 46,329. The firm's 50-day moving average is $76.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.83. The company has a market capitalization of $663.72 million, a P/E ratio of 15.25 and a beta of 0.52. Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $44.45 and a 52 week high of $90.18.

Esquire Financial (NASDAQ:ESQ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The company reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 expect that Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. will post 5.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Esquire Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.175 dividend. This represents a $0.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.89%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from Esquire Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Esquire Financial's payout ratio is presently 13.57%.

Insider Activity at Esquire Financial

In other Esquire Financial news, Director Selig Zises sold 20,000 shares of the 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 sale, the director now owns 35,501 shares in the company, valued at $2,754,522.59. This represents a 36.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Richard T. Powers sold 1,427 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.99, for a total value of $124,134.73. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 58,997 shares in the company, valued at $5,132,149.03. This trade represents a 2.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 18.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.