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Upgrade lifts Bottomline Technologies shares

Bottomline Technologies moved up 4 5/16, or 12 percent, to 41 1/16 Wednesday after Deutsche Banc Alex. Brown upgraded the developer of online billing software.

Bottomline (Nasdaq: EPAY) makes software that lets financial institutions and corporations convert from a paper-based billing system to swapping funds electronically.

On Tuesday, it landed a contract with SHEETZ, a nationwide retailer with more than 230 convenience stores, to provide its PayBase software. SHEETZ will use Bottomline's electronic payments and remittance advice offering to issue vendor disbursements nationwide.

Deutsche Banc Alex. Brown bumped the stock from a "buy" rating to a "strong buy."

Last quarter, Bottomline Technologies posted a profit of $79,000, or 1 cent a share, on sales of $11.1 million.

First Call consensus expects it to earn 3 cents a share in its third quarter and 4 cents a share in the fiscal year.

Its shares moved up to a 52-week high of 66 1/2 in May before falling to a low of 12 5/8 in September.

All three analysts covering the stock maintain "buy" recommendations on the stock.