Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) Receives $15.58 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seven brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $15.5833.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased 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. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $17.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $18.50 to $16.50 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased 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. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 13th.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Price Performance

MSDL stock opened at $14.35 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 1.59. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a 1 year low of $13.66 and a 1 year high of $20.00. The firm has a market cap of $1.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.25 and a beta of 0.35. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $14.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $16.14.

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

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.5%. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund’s payout ratio is 128.57%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Michael Jr. Occi purchased 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $14.87 per share, for a total transaction of $104,090.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 28,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $423,795. This represents a 32.56% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jeff M. Day purchased 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $14.89 per share, with a total value of $74,450.00. Following the purchase, the insider owned 22,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $339,760.02. The trade was a 28.06% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the fourth quarter worth $333,000. Adams Asset Advisors LLC grew its stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Adams Asset Advisors LLC now owns 111,397 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,836,000 after purchasing an additional 1,764 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 72,156 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,189,000 after purchasing an additional 1,308 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP grew its stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 102.2% in the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 12,726 shares of the company’s stock worth $205,000 after purchasing an additional 6,432 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd grew its stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 92.5% in the third quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 32,323 shares of the company’s stock worth $520,000 after purchasing an additional 15,532 shares in 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.