Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the seven brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $15.5417.

Several equities analysts recently commented on MSDL shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $16.50 to $16.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $17.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $16.50 to $14.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 13th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $16.00 to $16.25 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 5th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund news, insider Jeff M. Day purchased 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $14.89 per share, with a total value of $74,450.00. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 22,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $339,760.02. This represents a 28.06% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MSDL. NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. SHP Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. DV Equities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund during the 1st quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 53.3% during the 3rd quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,388 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 1,178 shares during the last quarter.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Price Performance

Shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund stock opened at $15.59 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $14.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a 1-year low of $13.66 and a 1-year high of $19.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.43 and a beta of 0.54.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $58.11 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $91.89 million. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund had a net margin of 22.84% and a return on equity of 9.73%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund will post 1.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund’s dividend payout ratio is presently 178.22%.

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.