Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (MSDL) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.50 on January 23rd

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, November 6th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of 0.50 per share on Friday, January 23rd. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 31st.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Stock Performance

Shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund stock opened at $16.96 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $17.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.76. The company has a market capitalization of $1.47 billion, a PE ratio of 10.28 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a 52 week low of $15.70 and a 52 week high of $21.75.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $99.72 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $98.55 million. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund had a return on equity of 10.21% and a net margin of 35.92%. As a group, analysts expect that Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $18.00 price objective (down previously from $19.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $16.00 to $16.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $20.00 to $18.50 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 10th. Raymond James Financial set a $18.50 price objective on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.75.

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.