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Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (MSDL) Competitors

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund logo
$15.38 +0.02 (+0.10%)
As of 03:23 PM Eastern
This is a fair market value price provided by Massive. Learn more.

MSDL vs. BXSL, KBDC, OTF, FHI, and CNS

Should you buy Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund stock or one of its competitors? Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's main competitors and comparable companies include Blackstone Secured Lending Fund (BXSL), Kayne Anderson BDC (KBDC), Blue Owl Technology Finance (OTF), Federated Hermes (FHI), and Cohen & Steers (CNS). Companies are selected based on similarities in market, industry, and size. These companies are all part of the "asset management & custody banks" industry.

How does Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund compare to Blackstone Secured Lending Fund?

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund (NYSE:BXSL) and Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, risk, media sentiment, valuation, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations and dividends.

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund pays an annual dividend of $3.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 12.3%. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund pays an annual dividend of $1.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 11.7%. Blackstone Secured Lending Fund pays out 242.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund pays out 260.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Blackstone Secured Lending Fund is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund. Blackstone Secured Lending Fund is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Blackstone Secured Lending Fund$341.41M17.05$563.46M$1.2719.67
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund$397.29M3.26$122.09M$0.6922.28

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund has a beta of 0.38, meaning that its share price is 62% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a beta of 0.53, meaning that its share price is 47% less volatile than the broader market.

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund currently has a consensus price target of $24.78, indicating a potential downside of 0.83%. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a consensus price target of $15.63, indicating a potential upside of 1.63%. Given Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund is more favorable than Blackstone Secured Lending Fund.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Blackstone Secured Lending Fund
1 Sell rating(s)
5 Hold rating(s)
4 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.30
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund
0 Sell rating(s)
6 Hold rating(s)
1 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.14

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund has a net margin of 21.51% compared to Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's net margin of 15.97%. Blackstone Secured Lending Fund's return on equity of 11.86% beat Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Blackstone Secured Lending Fund21.51% 11.86% 5.10%
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund 15.97%9.61%4.28%

36.5% of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund shares are held by institutional investors. 0.1% of Blackstone Secured Lending Fund shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

In the previous week, Blackstone Secured Lending Fund had 2 more articles in the media than Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund. MarketBeat recorded 2 mentions for Blackstone Secured Lending Fund and 0 mentions for Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund. Blackstone Secured Lending Fund's average media sentiment score of 1.27 beat Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's score of 0.00 indicating that Blackstone Secured Lending Fund is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Overall Sentiment
Blackstone Secured Lending Fund Positive
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Neutral

Summary

Blackstone Secured Lending Fund beats Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund on 13 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund compare to Kayne Anderson BDC?

Kayne Anderson BDC (NYSE:KBDC) and Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, risk, earnings, valuation, analyst recommendations, media sentiment, dividends and institutional ownership.

In the previous week, Kayne Anderson BDC had 2 more articles in the media than Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund. MarketBeat recorded 2 mentions for Kayne Anderson BDC and 0 mentions for Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's average media sentiment score of 0.00 beat Kayne Anderson BDC's score of -0.33 indicating that Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Overall Sentiment
Kayne Anderson BDC Neutral
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Neutral

Kayne Anderson BDC pays an annual dividend of $1.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 11.9%. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund pays an annual dividend of $1.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 11.7%. Kayne Anderson BDC pays out 146.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund pays out 260.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Kayne Anderson BDC is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has higher revenue and earnings than Kayne Anderson BDC. Kayne Anderson BDC is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Kayne Anderson BDC$84.89M10.48$93.71M$1.0912.36
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund$397.29M3.26$122.09M$0.6922.28

Kayne Anderson BDC has a beta of 0.31, meaning that its share price is 69% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a beta of 0.53, meaning that its share price is 47% less volatile than the broader market.

Kayne Anderson BDC has a net margin of 31.54% compared to Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's net margin of 15.97%. Kayne Anderson BDC's return on equity of 10.63% beat Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Kayne Anderson BDC31.54% 10.63% 5.06%
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund 15.97%9.61%4.28%

Kayne Anderson BDC presently has a consensus target price of $14.88, indicating a potential upside of 10.43%. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a consensus target price of $15.63, indicating a potential upside of 1.63%. Given Kayne Anderson BDC's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Kayne Anderson BDC is more favorable than Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Kayne Anderson BDC
1 Sell rating(s)
2 Hold rating(s)
2 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.20
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund
0 Sell rating(s)
6 Hold rating(s)
1 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.14

Summary

Kayne Anderson BDC beats Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund on 11 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund compare to Blue Owl Technology Finance?

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) and Blue Owl Technology Finance (NYSE:OTF) are both finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their media sentiment, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings, profitability, risk and valuation.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund currently has a consensus price target of $15.63, suggesting a potential upside of 1.63%. Blue Owl Technology Finance has a consensus price target of $13.60, suggesting a potential upside of 22.80%. Given Blue Owl Technology Finance's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Blue Owl Technology Finance is more favorable than Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund
0 Sell rating(s)
6 Hold rating(s)
1 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.14
Blue Owl Technology Finance
0 Sell rating(s)
3 Hold rating(s)
4 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.57

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a beta of 0.53, suggesting that its stock price is 47% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Blue Owl Technology Finance has a beta of -0.86, suggesting that its stock price is 186% less volatile than the broader market.

In the previous week, Blue Owl Technology Finance had 6 more articles in the media than Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund. MarketBeat recorded 6 mentions for Blue Owl Technology Finance and 0 mentions for Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund. Blue Owl Technology Finance's average media sentiment score of 0.12 beat Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's score of 0.00 indicating that Blue Owl Technology Finance is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Overall Sentiment
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Neutral
Blue Owl Technology Finance Neutral

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund pays an annual dividend of $1.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 11.7%. Blue Owl Technology Finance pays an annual dividend of $1.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 12.6%. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund pays out 260.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Blue Owl Technology Finance pays out 175.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Blue Owl Technology Finance is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Blue Owl Technology Finance has a net margin of 28.69% compared to Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's net margin of 15.97%. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's return on equity of 9.61% beat Blue Owl Technology Finance's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund15.97% 9.61% 4.28%
Blue Owl Technology Finance 28.69%7.17%3.86%

Blue Owl Technology Finance has higher revenue and earnings than Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund. Blue Owl Technology Finance is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund$397.29M3.26$122.09M$0.6922.28
Blue Owl Technology Finance$1.15B4.43$720.37M$0.8013.84

Summary

Blue Owl Technology Finance beats Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund on 12 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund compare to Federated Hermes?

Federated Hermes (NYSE:FHI) and Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their media sentiment, earnings, dividends, profitability, institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations and valuation.

Federated Hermes presently has a consensus target price of $57.40, suggesting a potential downside of 11.55%. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a consensus target price of $15.63, suggesting a potential upside of 1.63%. Given Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund is more favorable than Federated Hermes.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Federated Hermes
1 Sell rating(s)
5 Hold rating(s)
1 Buy rating(s)
1 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.25
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund
0 Sell rating(s)
6 Hold rating(s)
1 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.14

Federated Hermes has higher revenue and earnings than Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund. Federated Hermes is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Federated Hermes$1.93B2.51$403.30M$5.3812.06
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund$397.29M3.26$122.09M$0.6922.28

75.9% of Federated Hermes shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.2% of Federated Hermes shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Federated Hermes pays an annual dividend of $1.52 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund pays an annual dividend of $1.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 11.7%. Federated Hermes pays out 28.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund pays out 260.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Federated Hermes has raised its dividend for 4 consecutive years.

Federated Hermes has a net margin of 21.30% compared to Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's net margin of 15.97%. Federated Hermes' return on equity of 34.03% beat Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Federated Hermes21.30% 34.03% 18.54%
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund 15.97%9.61%4.28%

Federated Hermes has a beta of 0.65, meaning that its share price is 35% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a beta of 0.53, meaning that its share price is 47% less volatile than the broader market.

In the previous week, Federated Hermes had 1 more articles in the media than Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund. MarketBeat recorded 1 mentions for Federated Hermes and 0 mentions for Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund. Federated Hermes' average media sentiment score of 1.02 beat Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's score of 0.00 indicating that Federated Hermes is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company Overall Sentiment
Federated Hermes Positive
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Neutral

Summary

Federated Hermes beats Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund on 15 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

How does Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund compare to Cohen & Steers?

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) and Cohen & Steers (NYSE:CNS) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their media sentiment, earnings, risk, valuation, profitability, institutional ownership, dividends and analyst recommendations.

51.5% of Cohen & Steers shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 45.4% of Cohen & Steers shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund presently has a consensus target price of $15.63, suggesting a potential upside of 1.63%. Cohen & Steers has a consensus target price of $78.00, suggesting a potential downside of 6.00%. Given Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund is more favorable than Cohen & Steers.

Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund
0 Sell rating(s)
6 Hold rating(s)
1 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.14
Cohen & Steers
1 Sell rating(s)
1 Hold rating(s)
2 Buy rating(s)
0 Strong Buy rating(s)
2.25

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a beta of 0.53, meaning that its share price is 47% less volatile than the broader market. Comparatively, Cohen & Steers has a beta of 1.21, meaning that its share price is 21% more volatile than the broader market.

Cohen & Steers has higher revenue and earnings than Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Cohen & Steers, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings Ratio
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund$397.29M3.26$122.09M$0.6922.28
Cohen & Steers$556.12M7.67$153.22M$3.2625.45

Cohen & Steers has a net margin of 28.82% compared to Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's net margin of 15.97%. Cohen & Steers' return on equity of 27.41% beat Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's return on equity.

Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund15.97% 9.61% 4.28%
Cohen & Steers 28.82%27.41%19.58%

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund pays an annual dividend of $1.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 11.7%. Cohen & Steers pays an annual dividend of $2.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund pays out 260.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Cohen & Steers pays out 82.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Cohen & Steers has increased its dividend for 16 consecutive years.

In the previous week, Cohen & Steers had 2 more articles in the media than Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund. MarketBeat recorded 2 mentions for Cohen & Steers and 0 mentions for Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund. Cohen & Steers' average media sentiment score of 0.89 beat Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund's score of 0.00 indicating that Cohen & Steers is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company Overall Sentiment
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Neutral
Cohen & Steers Positive

Summary

Cohen & Steers beats Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund on 17 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.

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New MarketBeat Followers Over Time

This chart shows the number of new MarketBeat users adding MSDL and its top 5 competitors to their watchlist. Each company is represented with a line over a 90 day period.
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Media Sentiment Over Time

This chart shows the average media sentiment of NYSE and its competitors over the past 90 days as caculated by MarketBeat. The averaged score is equivalent to the following: Very Negative Sentiment <= -1.5, Negative Sentiment > -1.5 and <= -0.5, Neutral Sentiment > -0.5 and < 0.5, Positive Sentiment >= 0.5 and < 1.5, and Very Positive Sentiment >= 1.5.
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MSDL vs. The Competition

MetricMorgan Stanley Direct Lending FundCapital Markets IndustryFinance SectorNYSE Exchange
Market Cap$1.29B$5.68B$13.97B$24.20B
Dividend Yield11.72%7.39%5.89%3.71%
P/E Ratio22.2838.9229.6030.23
Price / Sales3.261,231.62516.4323.15
Price / Cash5.7548.3130.7119.80
Price / Book0.763.752.874.90
Net Income$122.09M$417.46M$1.31B$1.07B
7 Day Performance-0.03%-0.12%0.71%-0.21%
1 Month Performance1.59%1.98%2.76%2.83%
1 Year Performance-13.82%5.57%10.53%14.44%

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Competitors List

CompanyMarketRankShare PriceAnalysts' Price Target1Y Price PerformanceMarket CapRevenueP/E RatioEmployee CountIndicator(s)
MSDL
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund
1.9053 of 5 stars
$15.38
+0.1%
$15.63
+1.6%
-13.8%$1.29B$397.29M22.28N/A
BXSL
Blackstone Secured Lending Fund
2.105 of 5 stars
$24.38
+0.7%
$24.78
+1.7%
-17.3%$5.68B$341.41M19.192,020
KBDC
Kayne Anderson BDC
3.1092 of 5 stars
$13.33
+0.1%
$14.88
+11.6%
-11.5%$880.29M$84.89M12.23N/A
OTF
Blue Owl Technology Finance
4.7864 of 5 stars
$11.11
-0.2%
$13.60
+22.5%
N/A$5.09B$1.15B13.88N/A
FHI
Federated Hermes
2.9071 of 5 stars
$64.46
+0.5%
$57.40
-10.9%
+18.9%$4.81B$1.93B11.982,091

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This page (NYSE:MSDL) was last updated on 8/24/2026 by MarketBeat.com Staff.
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