Shikiar Asset Management Inc. Purchases 87,700 Shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL)

Shikiar Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL - Free Report) by 101.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 173,850 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 87,700 shares during the quarter. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund accounts for approximately 1.0% of Shikiar Asset Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Shikiar Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 0.20% of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund worth $3,470,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MSDL. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 1,987.0% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 352,700 shares of the company's stock worth $7,287,000 after purchasing an additional 335,800 shares during the period. Naviter Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,434,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 207.9% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 237,754 shares of the company's stock worth $4,912,000 after purchasing an additional 160,536 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the 4th quarter valued at $3,051,000. Finally, Sfmg LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund during the fourth quarter worth $2,864,000.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of MSDL traded up $0.10 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $19.39. The stock had a trading volume of 320,302 shares, compared to its average volume of 330,847. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a 1-year low of $17.59 and a 1-year high of $24.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.89 and a beta of 0.42. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $19.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $20.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.36.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.04). Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund had a net margin of 47.65% and a return on equity of 11.80%. The firm had revenue of $101.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $102.86 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund will post 2.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.31%. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 91.74%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Kevin Shannon acquired 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $19.43 per share, with a total value of $194,300.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 5,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $110,751. This trade represents a -232.56% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MSDL shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $21.00 to $20.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $20.50 to $19.50 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $20.00 to $19.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $20.00.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund 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.