Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) Short Interest Down 22.6% in December

by · The Markets Daily

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL – Get Free Report) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totaling 526,430 shares, a decline of 22.6% from the November 30th total of 680,051 shares. Currently, 0.6% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 722,975 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.7 days. Based on an average daily volume of 722,975 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.7 days. Currently, 0.6% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Insider Activity

In other Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund news, Director Joan Binstock bought 9,030 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $16.64 per share, for a total transaction of $150,259.20. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 50,042 shares in the company, valued at $832,698.88. This trade represents a 22.02% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CIO Ashwin Krishnan purchased 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $16.72 per share, for a total transaction of $50,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive owned 3,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,160. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have purchased a total of 12,630 shares of company stock valued at $210,265 in the last three months. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund during the second quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $210,000. Global Strategic Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund during the 2nd quarter worth $323,000. Catalina Capital Group LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the 2nd quarter valued at $301,000. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 27.3% in the 2nd quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 4,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 900 shares during the period.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $20.00 to $18.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 10th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $19.50 to $18.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $18.00 price objective (down previously from $19.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in a research note on Wednesday, November 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price 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. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.75.

View Our Latest Analysis on MSDL

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Price Performance

Shares of MSDL traded down $0.48 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $16.50. The stock had a trading volume of 1,533,307 shares, compared to its average volume of 821,511. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.00 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.45. The company’s fifty day moving average is $17.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.71. 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 – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.01. The firm 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 net margin of 35.92% and a return on equity of 10.21%. On average, analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund will post 2.56 EPS for the current year.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 31st. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund’s payout ratio is presently 121.21%.

About Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

(Get Free Report)

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.

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