StockNews.com Upgrades Deluxe (NYSE:DLX) to Strong-Buy

Deluxe (NYSE:DLX) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

Separately, Sidoti raised Deluxe to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th.

Deluxe Trading Up 2.4 %

Deluxe stock opened at $16.36 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. Deluxe has a 52 week low of $15.13 and a 52 week high of $24.87. The company has a market capitalization of $726.89 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.46. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $20.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $20.69.

Deluxe (NYSE:DLX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by ($0.05). Deluxe had a return on equity of 21.33% and a net margin of 2.49%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Deluxe will post 2.77 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Deluxe

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of Deluxe in the 4th quarter worth $2,565,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Deluxe by 99.5% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 52,040 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,176,000 after acquiring an additional 25,961 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Deluxe by 15.7% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 100,719 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,275,000 after acquiring an additional 13,683 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its stake in shares of Deluxe by 19.7% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 15,200 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $343,000 after acquiring an additional 2,500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Deluxe in the 4th quarter worth $301,000. 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.