Bailard Inc. Sells 21,626 Shares of Deluxe Co. (NYSE:DLX)

Bailard Inc. lowered its position in Deluxe Co. (NYSE:DLX - Free Report) by 63.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,300 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 21,626 shares during the period. Bailard Inc.'s holdings in Deluxe were worth $278,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DLX. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Deluxe by 93.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,104 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 534 shares during the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in Deluxe during the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Deluxe during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Deluxe by 57.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,206 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 1,166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its holdings in Deluxe by 63.5% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,237 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 1,257 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.90% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on DLX shares. Sidoti raised Deluxe to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com raised Deluxe from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday.

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Deluxe Stock Performance

Shares of DLX traded up $0.39 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $16.36. The company's stock had a trading volume of 346,247 shares, compared to its average volume of 252,488. Deluxe Co. has a one year low of $15.13 and a one year high of $24.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $726.89 million, a PE ratio of 13.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.46. The stock's 50-day moving average is $20.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.69.

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

Deluxe Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.33%. Deluxe's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 101.69%.

Deluxe 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.