Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has an average analyst rating of "Hold", with six of seven brokerages recommending hold and one recommending buy. The average 1-year price target is $15.63.
• The fund recently reported quarterly EPS of $0.47, beating estimates by $0.02, though revenue of $58.1 million came in well below expectations.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share, equal to an annualized yield of 11.4%, but its payout ratio is high at 178.22%.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Hold" from the seven brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $15.6250.

Several research analysts have recently issued reports 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 on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $14.00 to $14.50 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $16.00 to $16.25 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Trading Up 0.8%

NYSE MSDL opened at $15.76 on Friday. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a 1-year low of $13.66 and a 1-year high of $19.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $15.31 and a 200-day moving average of $15.36. The firm has a market cap of $1.34 billion, a PE ratio of 15.61 and a beta of 0.52.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.02. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund had a return on equity of 9.73% and a net margin of 22.84%.The business had revenue of $58.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $91.89 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund will post 1.84 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 24th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 178.22%.

Institutional Trading of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 53.2% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 155,232 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,098,000 after purchasing an additional 53,902 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 682.5% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 198,684 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,966,000 after buying an additional 173,292 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 83.6% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 26,180 shares of the company's stock valued at $490,000 after buying an additional 11,923 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the second quarter worth about $118,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 35.3% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 50,500 shares of the company's stock worth $945,000 after buying an additional 13,186 shares in the last quarter.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Company Profile

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.

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