Wells Fargo & Company Has Lowered Expectations for Morgan Stanley Direct Lending (NYSE:MSDL) Stock Price

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending (NYSE:MSDL) had its price target reduced by Wells Fargo & Company from $21.00 to $20.00 in a research note published on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Price Performance

MSDL stock opened at $20.13 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending has a 52-week low of $19.28 and a 52-week high of $24.18. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $20.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.48. The company has a market capitalization of $1.78 billion and a PE ratio of 7.89.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending (NYSE:MSDL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.63 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $103.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $107.02 million. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending had a net margin of 54.89% and a return on equity of 12.69%. Analysts predict that Morgan Stanley Direct Lending will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.30%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley Direct Lending

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending by 3,509.0% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 28,872 shares of the company’s stock valued at $571,000 after acquiring an additional 28,072 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending in the third quarter worth $510,000. Fountainhead AM LLC acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending in the third quarter worth $515,000. Raymond James & Associates increased its position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending by 377.5% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 123,822 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,449,000 after buying an additional 97,893 shares during the period. Finally, Shikiar Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending in the fourth quarter worth $1,780,000.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Company Profile

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund is a business development company. It is a non-diversified, externally managed specialty finance company focused on lending to middle-market companies. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund is based in NEW YORK.