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 assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the seven research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $18.0833.

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $17.00 price objective on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Raymond James Financial set a $18.50 target price on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Zacks Research lowered Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

In other Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund news, Director Joan Binstock purchased 9,030 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $16.64 per share, with a total value of $150,259.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 50,042 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $832,698.88. This trade represents a 22.02% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Adam S. Metz bought 28,248 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $17.67 per share, with a total value of $499,142.16. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 28,248 shares in the company, valued at $499,142.16. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have purchased 66,937 shares of company stock worth $1,175,272. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund during the second quarter valued at $299,000. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the second quarter valued at $550,000. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 125.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 96,933 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,815,000 after purchasing an additional 53,969 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 43,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $761,000 after purchasing an additional 1,021 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,598,000.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Stock Down 0.9%

MSDL opened at $16.47 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.43 billion, a PE ratio of 9.98 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 1.19. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a fifty-two week low of $15.70 and a fifty-two week high of $21.75. The business has a 50-day moving average of $17.10 and a 200-day moving average of $18.36.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $99.72 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $98.55 million. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund had a net margin of 35.92% and a return on equity of 10.15%. Equities research analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund will post 2.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 31st. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 121.21%.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Company Profile

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund is a business development company. It is a non-diversified, externally managed specialty finance company focused on lending to middle-market companies. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund is based in NEW YORK.