Don't Ignore The Insider Selling In Esquire Financial Holdings

Anyone interested in Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:ESQ) should probably be aware that the Independent Director, Selig Zises, recently divested US$477k worth of shares in the company, at an average price of US$95.38 each. However, the silver lining is that the sale only reduced their total holding by 2.9%, so we're hesitant to read anything much into it, on its own.

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The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Esquire Financial Holdings

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Founder, Ari Kornhaber, sold US$1.7m worth of shares at a price of US$84.25 per share. So it's clear an insider wanted to take some cash off the table, even below the current price of US$93.44. When an insider sells below the current price, it suggests that they considered that lower price to be fair. That makes us wonder what they think of the (higher) recent valuation. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. This single sale was just 16% of Ari Kornhaber's stake.

In total, Esquire Financial Holdings insiders sold more than they bought over the last year. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

See our latest analysis for Esquire Financial Holdings

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Insider Ownership

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. I reckon it's a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. Esquire Financial Holdings insiders own about US$130m worth of shares (which is 17% of the company). This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Esquire Financial Holdings Tell Us?

An insider sold Esquire Financial Holdings shares recently, but they didn't buy any. Zooming out, the longer term picture doesn't give us much comfort. On the plus side, Esquire Financial Holdings makes money, and is growing profits. It is good to see high insider ownership, but the insider selling leaves us cautious. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. At Simply Wall St, we found 1 warning sign for Esquire Financial Holdings that deserve your attention before buying any shares.

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For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.