Franklin Resources Inc. Acquires New Stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending (NYSE:MSDL)

Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending (NYSE:MSDL) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 77,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,555,000. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.09% of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Allworth Financial LP purchased a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending in the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Muzinich & Co. Inc. bought a new position in shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending during the third quarter valued at approximately $68,000. Centiva Capital LP purchased a new position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending during the third quarter valued at approximately $213,000. Caprock Group LLC bought a new position in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending in the third quarter worth approximately $245,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in Morgan Stanley Direct Lending during the third quarter worth $295,000.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Stock Performance

Shares of MSDL opened at $21.35 on Friday. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending has a 12 month low of $19.05 and a 12 month high of $24.18. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $20.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $20.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The firm has a market cap of $1.90 billion and a PE ratio of 8.37.

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a — dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a dividend yield of 10.1%. Morgan Stanley Direct Lending’s dividend payout ratio is presently 78.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $22.00 target price on shares of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending in a report on Friday, September 13th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.42.

About Morgan Stanley Direct Lending

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.