30,269 Shares in Deluxe Co. (NYSE:DLX) Purchased by Aristeia Capital L.L.C.

Aristeia Capital L.L.C. bought a new position in Deluxe Co. (NYSE:DLX) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 30,269 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $684,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Deluxe in the fourth quarter worth approximately $220,326,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Deluxe by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,361,658 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $53,351,000 after buying an additional 177,534 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Deluxe during the 4th quarter valued at $3,210,000. Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Deluxe by 24.7% during the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 596,977 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $13,486,000 after acquiring an additional 118,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in Deluxe by 34.2% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 408,069 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $9,218,000 after acquiring an additional 103,989 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.90% of the company’s stock.

Deluxe Stock Performance

NYSE DLX opened at $15.08 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $674.33 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.78, a PEG ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.46. 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 Co. has a 12-month low of $13.70 and a 12-month high of $24.87.

Deluxe (NYSE:DLX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $536.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $525.43 million. Deluxe had a return on equity of 21.33% and a net margin of 2.49%. Deluxe’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.76 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Deluxe Co. will post 2.77 EPS for the current year.

Deluxe Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.96%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. Deluxe’s payout ratio is presently 96.00%.

Insider Activity

In other Deluxe news, CEO Barry C. Mccarthy bought 3,926 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $16.45 per share, for a total transaction of $64,582.70. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 272,851 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,488,398.95. This trade represents a 1.46 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 5.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on DLX shares. StockNews.com downgraded Deluxe from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. TD Securities dropped their target price on Deluxe from $33.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Sidoti raised Deluxe to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th.

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.