Morgan Stanley Direct Lending (NYSE:MSDL) Sees Large Volume Increase - Still a Buy?

Shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending (NYSE:MSDL - Get Free Report) saw an uptick in trading volume on Tuesday . 98,753 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 48% from the previous session's volume of 190,103 shares.The stock last traded at $20.23 and had previously closed at $20.55.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MSDL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Morgan Stanley Direct Lending from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $22.00 price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending in a report on Friday, September 13th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $21.42.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 1.56. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $20.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $20.08. The company has a market capitalization of $1.82 billion and a P/E ratio of 8.02.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a -- dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a dividend yield of 10.1%. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending's dividend payout ratio is currently 78.43%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morgan Stanley Direct Lending

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MSDL. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending by 3.9% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,850,319 shares of the company's stock worth $36,192,000 after purchasing an additional 70,076 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates increased its position in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending by 377.5% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 123,822 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,449,000 after buying an additional 97,893 shares during the period. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending in the third quarter worth $1,599,000. ASB Consultores LLC bought a new stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,589,000. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp raised its position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending by 11.6% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 38,625 shares of the company's stock valued at $764,000 after purchasing an additional 4,025 shares in the last quarter.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.