Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) Releases Earnings Results

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.45, Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $59.28 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $89.99 million. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund had a return on equity of 9.49% and a net margin of 15.97%.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Price Performance

Shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund stock traded up $0.03 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $15.47. 761,291 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 463,429. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a fifty-two week low of $13.66 and a fifty-two week high of $18.17. The company has a market cap of $1.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.43 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $15.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.6%. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund’s dividend payout ratio is presently 178.22%.

Institutional Trading of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. DV Equities LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 61.9% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,707 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 1,417 shares in the last quarter. Keystone Financial Group bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund during the third quarter worth $72,000. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund during the fourth quarter worth $80,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MSDL has been the topic of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $14.00 to $14.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased 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 research report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $16.00 to $16.25 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.62.

About Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

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.