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

Key Points

• The Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) has received a consensus rating of "Hold" from seven analysts, with a price target of approximately $18.08.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, translating to an annual yield of 11.7%, although it has a payout ratio exceeding 100%.
• Insider activity shows increased confidence, with key directors acquiring shares at around $17.68 each, indicating a significant boost in their positions.

Shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have issued a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $18.0833.

MSDL has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company set a $17.00 target price on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on 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. Raymond James Financial set a $18.50 price target on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. UBS Group lowered their target price on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $19.50 to $18.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 1st.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of MSDL stock opened at $17.07 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $17.41 and a 200-day moving average of $18.63. The company has a market capitalization of $1.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.84 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a 12-month low of $15.70 and a 12-month high of $21.75.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.02). Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund had a net margin of 42.65% and a return on equity of 11.24%. The company had revenue of $99.51 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.99 million. As a group, equities research 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 Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 24th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's payout ratio is 103.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

In other news, Director David N. Miller purchased 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $17.69 per share, with a total value of $176,900.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 17,168 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $303,701.92. This represents a 139.51% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Adam S. Metz acquired 28,248 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $17.67 per share, with a total value of $499,142.16. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 28,248 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $499,142.16. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 66,937 shares of company stock valued at $1,175,272. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR grew its holdings in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 99.9% during the 2nd quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR now owns 1,761,950 shares of the company's stock worth $32,984,000 after acquiring an additional 880,372 shares in the last quarter. Muzinich & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 114.2% in the 2nd quarter. Muzinich & Co. Inc. now owns 455,631 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,529,000 after purchasing an additional 242,931 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 682.5% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 198,684 shares of the company's stock worth $3,966,000 after purchasing an additional 173,292 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 85.1% during the second quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 370,759 shares of the company's stock worth $6,941,000 after acquiring an additional 170,467 shares during the period. Finally, TT Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 332.3% during the first quarter. TT Capital Management LLC now owns 198,772 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,967,000 after acquiring an additional 152,792 shares during the last quarter.

About Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

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.

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