Deluxe Corporation DLX

Competitive advantage analysis · industrials

Corporate Default
Overall moat score
69/100
Moderate

Ranked against 26 peers in Conglomerates

About Deluxe Corporation

Deluxe Corporation provides technology-enabled solutions to small and medium-sized businesses, and financial institutions in the United States and Canada. The company operates through four segments: Merchant Services, B2B Payments, Data Solutions, and Print. It offers credit and debit card authorization and payment systems; processing services to small and medium-sized retail and service businesses, as well as nonprofit and government organizations; … Full DLX analysis →

Key strengths

  • Margins Stable Across Cycles Operating margin volatility is low (stability score 0.92), demonstrating pricing resilience across cycles.
  • Revenue Growth Consistent Revenue growth volatility is low (stability score 0.92), suggesting sticky customer base.

Key risks

  • Elevated Debt Risk Debt serviceability is weak (score 0.38), raising refinancing risk.
  • Liquidity Concerns Liquidity is concerning (score 0.20), raising questions about short-term obligations.

The dashed ring is the peer median. Defense scores are percentile ranks against peers, so 50 is roughly the typical company in this group.

Upgrade to unlock the signals and evidence behind each defense.

Premium access

Unlock full defense analysis

Get key signals, strengths, and risks for every moat dimension.

Upgrade to Premium Unlock all moat defenses and evidence.

Pricing Power

Strong
83
Premium

Signals, strengths and risks for Pricing Power

Premium

Signals, strengths and risks for Cost Advantage

Premium

Signals, strengths and risks for Customer Stickiness

Premium

Signals, strengths and risks for Capital Efficiency

Premium

Signals, strengths and risks for Resilience

Premium

Signals, strengths and risks for Scale & Market Position

Where DLX ranks in Conglomerates

Deluxe Corporation ranks #4 of 27 scored companies in Conglomerates by moat score — the top 15%. The widest moat in the group is Steel Partners Holdings LP LTD (SPLP) at 79/100.

# Company Moat score Rating
1 Steel Partners Holdings LP LTD SPLP 79/100 Strong
2 Honeywell International Inc. HON 78/100 Strong
3 Valmont Industries, Inc. VMI 71/100 Moderate
4 Deluxe Corporation DLX 69/100 Moderate
5 3M Company MMM 68/100 Moderate
6 Griffon Corporation GFF 66/100 Moderate
7 RCM Technologies, Inc. RCMT 66/100 Moderate
8 Cresud S.A.C.I.F. y A. Warrant CRESW 62/100 Moderate
9 Cresud S.A.C.I.F. y A. CRESY 62/100 Moderate

See every General Corporate company ranked by moat score →

How DLX scores on the Corporate Default defenses

Pricing Power

Score 83 · 20% of the moat score

Pricing power is the ability to raise prices without losing volume.

Cost Advantage

Score 51 · 15% of the moat score

A cost advantage means delivering the same product for structurally less — better purchasing, denser distribution, a more automated process.

Customer Stickiness

Score 88 · 15% of the moat score

Stickiness is what makes revenue repeat without being re-won every year.

Capital Efficiency

Score 68 · 18% of the moat score

Capital efficiency asks what the company earns on the money tied up in the business.

Resilience

Score 42 · 17% of the moat score

Resilience is the capacity to get through a bad year on its own terms — enough liquidity, enough interest cover, and enough cash generation to avoid a rescue financing or a forced sale.

Scale & Market Position

Score 78 · 15% of the moat score

Scale matters only when it converts into economics.

How each Corporate Default defense is measured, in full →

Understanding DLX's moat

What is Deluxe Corporation's moat score?

Deluxe Corporation (DLX) scores 69 out of 100 on the StatsAlpha Moat Map, which rates its competitive advantage as moderate. It ranks #4 of 27 scored companies in Conglomerates, the top 15%. The score is a weighted composite of 6 competitive defenses, each measured against industry peers of 26 companies in Conglomerates. Its strongest defense is Customer Stickiness (88/100) and its weakest is Resilience (42/100).

How does Deluxe Corporation compare with other Conglomerates companies?

Deluxe Corporation ranks #4 of 27 scored companies in Conglomerates by moat score. The widest moat in Conglomerates is Steel Partners Holdings LP LTD (SPLP) at 79/100. The companies ranked closest are Valmont Industries, Inc. (VMI) at 71 just above it and 3M Company (MMM) at 68 just below it.

How is the moat score calculated?

Each company is scored with an industry-specific template — Corporate Default in this case, chosen because the defenses that matter to a bank are not the ones that matter to a software company. Every defense combines several financial signals, and each signal is measured as a percentile against a peer group of 26 companies in Conglomerates. The defenses are then weighted to produce the overall score out of 100.

Why is Deluxe Corporation scored with the Corporate Default template?

Most public companies sell a product or a service at a margin, so the moat question is whether that margin survives contact with competitors. The Corporate template scores the six defenses that show up in a general operating company's financial signature: whether it can hold price, produce more cheaply than rivals, keep its customers, earn a return above its cost of capital, withstand a downturn, and turn size into economics.

Which competitive defenses are measured for Deluxe Corporation?

The Corporate Default template measures 6 defenses, and DLX scores: Pricing Power (83), Cost Advantage (51), Customer Stickiness (88), Capital Efficiency (68), Resilience (42), Scale & Market Position (78). Each is scored independently as a percentile against peers, so a company can be strong on one and weak on another — the overall score reflects how those defenses are weighted for this industry.

Send Feedback
Please select a category.
0/1000