Deluxe (NYSE:DLX) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Deluxe (NYSE:DLX) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning.

Deluxe Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE DLX opened at $23.25 on Thursday. Deluxe has a 52 week low of $17.60 and a 52 week high of $24.87. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $20.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $21.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.03 billion, a PE ratio of 18.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.38.

Deluxe Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 19th. Deluxe’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 96.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Barry C. Mccarthy purchased 2,820 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $19.08 per share, for a total transaction of $53,805.60. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 178,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,409,023.60. The trade was a 1.60 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 4.23% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Deluxe

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Boston Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Deluxe during the first quarter worth about $995,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Deluxe by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,040,327 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $45,824,000 after acquiring an additional 123,361 shares during the period. Arjuna Capital acquired a new stake in Deluxe during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,490,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Deluxe by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,167,850 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $106,406,000 after purchasing an additional 171,998 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. raised its stake in shares of Deluxe by 3.4% during the second quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 1,907,463 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $42,842,000 after purchasing an additional 62,525 shares during the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Deluxe

Deluxe Corporation provides technology-enabled solutions to enterprises, small businesses, and financial institutions in the United States, Canada, and Australia. It operates through Merchant Services, B2B Payments, Data Solutions, and Print segments. The Merchant Services offers credit and debit card authorization and payment systems, as well as processing services primarily to small and medium-sized retail and service businesses.