Deluxe (NYSE:DLX) Hits New 12-Month High Following Dividend Announcement

Deluxe Co. (NYSE:DLX) shares reached a new 52-week high on Thursday after the company announced a dividend. The company 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. Investors of record on Monday, May 20th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.56%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 17th. Deluxe’s dividend payout ratio is currently 203.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Northcoast Research assumed coverage on shares of Deluxe in a research report on Friday, April 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $27.00 target price on the stock.

Deluxe Stock Up 8.4 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.49, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market cap of $945.84 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.56, a PEG ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.47. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $19.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $19.42.

Deluxe (NYSE:DLX) last posted 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. The firm had revenue of $537.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $537.80 million. Deluxe had a return on equity of 21.53% and a net margin of 1.20%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.98 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Deluxe Co. will post 2.78 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Barry C. Mccarthy bought 2,666 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $19.25 per share, for a total transaction of $51,320.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 173,410 shares in the company, valued at $3,338,142.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 4.23% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Deluxe

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of DLX. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Deluxe by 314.2% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,400 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,062 shares in the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its holdings in Deluxe by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 36,782 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $789,000 after buying an additional 1,253 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank increased its stake in shares of Deluxe by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 95,500 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,804,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. EMC Capital Management raised its holdings in shares of Deluxe by 63.2% during 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 period. Finally, Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Deluxe by 159.3% during the 4th quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 3,106 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 1,908 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

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.