Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wells Fargo & Company

Key Points

• Wells Fargo & Company upgraded the Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating, signaling increased analyst confidence.
• Despite the upgrade, other analysts have mixed views: RBC reduced their target price from $21 to $19, while UBS raised it from $20.50 to $21.
• Insider buying activity is noteworthy, with Directors purchasing a combined total of over $676,000 in shares, signaling confidence in the company’s future.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report issued on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage presently has a $17.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price target indicates a potential upside of 2.53% from the company's previous close.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. UBS Group upped their target price on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $20.50 to $21.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Zacks Research downgraded 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. reduced their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $18.60.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Price Performance

NYSE MSDL opened at $16.58 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.44 billion, a PE ratio of 8.59 and a beta of 0.25. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a 12-month low of $15.70 and a 12-month high of $21.75. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $17.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $18.79.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $99.51 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.99 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

In related news, CEO Michael Jr. Occi bought 14,000 shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $17.78 per share, for a total transaction of $248,920.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 21,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $382,270. This represents a 186.67% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joan Binstock bought 5,659 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $17.68 per share, for a total transaction of $100,051.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 39,251 shares of the company's stock, valued at $693,957.68. This represents a 16.85% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought 57,907 shares of company stock valued at $1,025,013 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund during the second quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 62.3% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,606 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 225.0% in the 2nd quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 3,250 shares of the company's stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 2,250 shares in the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the 1st quarter valued at $71,000. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 27.3% during the 2nd quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 4,200 shares of the company's stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the period.

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.