JPMorgan Chase & Co. Cuts Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) Price Target to $14.00

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE:MSDL) had its price target dropped by equities researchers at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $16.50 to $14.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective suggests a potential downside of 4.35% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $18.50 to $16.50 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $16.00 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $17.00 price target on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $15.92.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund Stock Performance

Shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund stock traded up $0.10 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $14.64. 371,455 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 863,436. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund has a one year low of $14.25 and a one year high of $20.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.45 and a beta of 0.34. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $15.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $16.64.

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

Insider Transactions at Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

In other Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund news, insider Jeff M. Day bought 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $14.89 per share, with a total value of $74,450.00. Following the purchase, the insider owned 22,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $339,760.02. This trade represents a 28.06% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Jr. Occi purchased 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $14.87 per share, for a total transaction of $104,090.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 28,500 shares in the company, valued at $423,795. This represents a 32.56% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.21% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MSDL. SHP Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the 4th quarter valued at $523,000. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 100.8% in the 4th quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC now owns 47,189 shares of the company’s stock valued at $778,000 after acquiring an additional 23,689 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund in the 4th quarter worth $1,345,000. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund by 26.2% in the 4th quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 713,641 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,761,000 after purchasing an additional 148,020 shares in the last quarter.

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.