Deluxe (NYSE:DLX) Hits New 52-Week High Following Dividend Announcement

Deluxe Co. (NYSE:DLX)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Thursday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock traded as high as $21.97 and last traded at $21.57, with a volume of 580837 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $19.89.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 17th. Deluxe’s dividend payout ratio is currently 155.85%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Northcoast Research started coverage on Deluxe in a report on Friday, April 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $27.00 price objective for the company.

Deluxe Trading Down 0.2 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.49, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The stock has a market cap of $943.65 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.95, a P/E/G ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.48. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $19.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $19.45.

Deluxe (NYSE:DLX) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The business services provider reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.05. Deluxe had a return on equity of 21.35% and a net margin of 1.57%. The firm had revenue of $537.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $537.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.98 earnings per share. Deluxe’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Deluxe Co. will post 2.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Deluxe news, CEO Barry C. Mccarthy bought 2,666 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $19.25 per share, for a total transaction of $51,320.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 173,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,338,142.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 4.23% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DLX. CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of Deluxe by 314.2% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,400 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,062 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Deluxe in the 1st quarter worth $46,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Deluxe by 159.3% in the 4th quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 3,106 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 1,908 shares during the last quarter. EMC Capital Management increased its stake in shares of Deluxe by 63.2% in the 3rd quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 4,895 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $92,000 after acquiring an additional 1,895 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in shares of Deluxe by 32.9% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 8,026 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $172,000 after acquiring an additional 1,985 shares during the last quarter. 93.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Deluxe Company Profile

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.