Esquire Financial (ESQ) Director Leonard Exercises Options

What Happened

• Director Leonard exercised 2,232 stock options on 2026-08-04, paying the $19.57 strike price for a total of $43,680. The company withheld 335 shares (valued at $130.31 each, ~$43,654) to cover tax liability. The underlying options (2,232) were canceled on exercise, leaving a net increase of 1,897 common shares to Leonard.

Key Details

• Transaction date: 2026-08-04; filing date: 2026-08-06.
• Exercise: 2,232 shares at $19.57 per share = $43,680 (code M).
• Tax/withholding: 335 shares disposed at $130.31 per share = $43,654 (code F).
• Net shares received: 2,232 exercised − 335 withheld = 1,897 shares.
• Shares owned after transaction: Not reported in this filing.
• Footnotes: F1 indicates the options exercised were fully vested. F2 notes another grant vests in five equal annual installments beginning May 26, 2027 (not applicable to the exercised options).
• Transaction codes explained: M = option exercise/conversion; F = payment of exercise price or tax liability (share withholding).
• Filing appears to have been submitted two days after the trade (filed Aug 6 for an Aug 4 transaction), which is generally within the Form 4 reporting window.

Context

• This was an option exercise with partial share withholding to cover taxes (a common, routine event), not a sale into the open market. The exercise shows the director acquired shares by paying the strike price; it does not necessarily indicate a buy/sell judgment about the stock.