Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (MSDL) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.45 on April 24th

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a dividend of 0.45 per share on Friday, April 24th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 12.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Stock Down 4.3%

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund stock opened at $14.81 on Friday. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a fifty-two week low of $14.64 and a fifty-two week high of $20.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.29 billion, a PE ratio of 10.58 and a beta of 0.26. The company’s 50-day moving average is $16.15 and its 200-day moving average is $16.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.45.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.49. The business had revenue of $49.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $97.30 million. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund had a return on equity of 9.82% and a net margin of 30.73%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on MSDL shares. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $16.00 price objective (down from $17.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $16.00 to $16.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $18.00 price target (down from $19.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in a research report on Wednesday, November 26th. Zacks Research upgraded Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $17.58.

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.