Wells Fargo & Company Cuts Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) Price Target to $14.00

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) had its price objective trimmed by Wells Fargo & Company from $16.00 to $14.00 in a research report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $16.00 to $16.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Zacks Research raised shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $18.50 to $16.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $18.00 price objective (down from $19.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $16.92.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MSDL opened at $14.90 on Monday. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a twelve month low of $14.25 and a twelve month high of $20.90. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $16.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $16.76. The company has a market capitalization of $1.28 billion, a PE ratio of 10.64 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a quick ratio of 45.48, a current ratio of 45.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund had a return on equity of 9.88% and a net margin of 30.73%.The firm had revenue of $49.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $97.30 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund will post 2.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.1%. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund’s payout ratio is presently 142.86%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Michael Jr. Occi purchased 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $14.87 per share, with a total value of $104,090.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 28,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $423,795. The trade was a 32.56% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MSDL. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund during the third quarter worth about $30,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. SHP Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. DV Equities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 62.3% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,606 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter.

About Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE: MSDL) is a closed-end management investment company that seeks to provide investors with attractive current income and the potential for capital appreciation. The fund primarily invests in senior secured loans and other debt instruments issued by middle-market companies. By focusing on floating-rate structures, it aims to offer a measure of protection against rising interest rates while generating regular cash distributions.

The fund’s investment strategy centers on building a diversified portfolio of direct lending opportunities across a broad range of industries, including healthcare, business services, and industrials.