Start here if you're new
what it is
Esquire Bank serves lawyers, small businesses, and New York customers with loans, deposits, and payment services.
how it gets paid
Last year Esquire Financial made $139M in revenue. Legal community lending income was the main engine at $62.6M, or 45% of sales.
why it's growing
Revenue grew 23.0% last year. Annual revenue was $139M, up 23.0% vs. prior year, according to SEC filing data.
what just happened
Revenue reached $101M, up 180% vs. prior year, while profit per share came in at $1.62.
At a glance
B++ balance sheet — above average — nothing keeping you up at night
75/100 earnings predictability — reasonably predictable
18.3x trailing p/e — priced about right
0.7% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
$5.14 fy2024 eps est
xvary composite: 61/100 — average
What they do
Esquire Bank serves lawyers, small businesses, and New York customers with loans, deposits, and payment services.
Most banks try to be everything to everyone. Esquire sticks to lawyers and small businesses, and that focus helped push 2025 revenue to $139 million, up 23.0%. If your bank understands case timing, contingency fees, and merchant payments, switching means relearning your whole money setup.
How they make money
$139M
annual revenue · their business grew +23.0% last year
Legal community lending income
$62.6M
Commercial and consumer banking income
$41.7M
Merchant services fees
$20.9M
Service charges and other fees
$13.8M
The products that matter
makes commercial loans
Commercial lending
6.02% net interest margin
This is the engine. A 6.02% net interest margin says the loan book is earning much more than the funding base costs. That's the number that gives the niche its credibility.
profit driver
funds the balance sheet
Core deposits
$2.06B deposits
These $2.06B in deposits are the bank's raw material. For a lender, deposits are inventory with paperwork. If they stay sticky and relatively cheap, the margin story holds up better.
funding base
niche client franchise
Legal industry banking
specialized focus
This is the differentiator, but the page is thin on hard share data. So you should treat the edge as proven by margins, not by disclosed dominance. That's a useful distinction when the bank starts doing bigger deals.
the bet
Key numbers
$5.14
fy2024 eps est
$6M
fy2024 rev est
18.3x
trailing p/e
0.7%
dividend yield
Financial health
B++
strength
- balance sheet grade B++ — above average financial health
- risk rank 3 — safer than 50% of stocks
- price stability 65 / 100
B++ — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
Return history isn't available for ESQ right now.
source: institutional data · return history unavailable
What just happened
beat estimates
Revenue reached $101M, up 180% vs. prior year, while profit per share came in at $1.62.
Annual revenue was $139M, up 23.0% vs. prior year, according to SEC filing data. Quiet part out loud: this tiny bank is growing like it has a much larger balance sheet.
$101M
revenue
$1.62
profit per share
+180%
revenue growth
the number that mattered
The 180% revenue jump matters because it shows the bank's niche is scaling, not just surviving.
source: company earnings report, 2026
Get this snapshot in your inbox
This page, delivered free — plus weekly updates when the numbers change. plain english, no spam.
weekly updates
earnings alerts
plain english
no spam
What could go wrong
ESQ is not facing generic bank risk here. It is facing a very specific test: keep the legal-industry spread machine working while proving a $350M stock deal really does lift EPS 23% by 2027.
high
Signature acquisition integration
The growth narrative now runs through a $350M all-stock transaction. If cost saves slip, cross-sell hopes stall, or clients leave, the promised 23% EPS accretion stops looking like a forecast and starts looking like a marketing line.
Primary catalyst at risk
high
Margin compression in a one-engine model
Net interest income is $119M of the $139M revenue shown here. That's 86% of the business. If the 6.02% net interest margin narrows, there is no large fee machine waiting in the background to soften the hit.
Could pressure most of the revenue base
med
Bigger banks decide the niche is worth chasing
ESQ's edge is focus, not size. If larger banks push into legal-industry clients, deposit pricing gets tougher and loan yields get less generous. In plain English: the specialty that lifts margins also paints a target on them.
Could erode pricing power
med
Thin evidence on niche dominance
The snapshot shows the niche and the margins, but not hard share data that proves ESQ owns this market. That leaves part of the thesis resting on outcomes rather than disclosed competitive proof. When disclosure is thin, execution has to do more talking.
Makes the premium harder to underwrite
The biggest risk is not survival. It is disappointment. If ESQ loses the 6.02% margin edge or the 23% deal payoff stops looking credible, the stock stops being a clever niche bank and starts looking like a small bank with extra homework.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
the number
6.02% net interest margin
This is the cleanest read on whether the legal-industry niche still pays unusually well. If the spread loses its six-handle, the stock loses its easiest sell.
catalyst
Signature deal close and the first real integration update
The market was sold on 23% EPS accretion by 2027. You want the first management commentary after close to sound like a schedule, not a hope.
street view
Whether one $125 target becomes a pattern
Raymond James is supportive. That helps. A broader analyst move in the same direction would tell you the street thinks the merger math is more than management ambition.
risk
Any sign the niche starts attracting bigger rivals
Specialization is the moat here. If larger banks begin targeting the same client set, you would expect deposit costs and loan pricing to feel it before the press releases say so.
Analyst rankings
earnings predictability
75 / 100
This score says the business has usually been readable. In human-speak, analysts think ESQ has not been a surprise machine. The catch is that acquisitions are a great way to make a predictable bank less predictable for a while.
risk rank
3
Risk rank 3 means you are not buying a bunker stock and you are not buying chaos. You are buying a middle-risk bank with above-average dependence on one niche and one acquisition outcome.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutional ownership data for ESQ is being compiled.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
n/a
n/a
$104
current price
n/a
target midpoint · n/a from current
Want the deeper analysis?
The full deep dive: dcf model, scenario analysis, competitive moat breakdown, and quarterly tracking — everything on this page, taken further.
see plans from $5/moThe deep dive