Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Cuts Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) Price Target to $16.50

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) had its target price reduced by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $18.50 to $16.50 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “market perform” rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ target price points to a potential upside of 12.43% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Zacks Research raised Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target 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. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $18.00 price objective (down from $19.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in a research report on Wednesday, November 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $16.00 target price (down from $17.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $17.25.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Price Performance

NYSE:MSDL traded down $0.12 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $14.68. The company had a trading volume of 166,326 shares, compared to its average volume of 850,427. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.26 billion, a PE ratio of 10.47 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a quick ratio of 45.48, a current ratio of 45.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $16.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $16.81. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a one year low of $14.25 and a one year high of $20.90.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.49. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund had a net margin of 30.73% and a return on equity of 9.88%. The firm had revenue of $49.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $97.30 million. Analysts forecast that Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MSDL. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 53.2% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 155,232 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,098,000 after acquiring an additional 53,902 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 682.5% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 198,684 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,966,000 after buying an additional 173,292 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund during the second quarter valued at approximately $342,000. Americana Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 3.1% in the second quarter. Americana Partners LLC now owns 378,154 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,079,000 after purchasing an additional 11,351 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its position 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 worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period.

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.