MSDL Stock Analysis: Morgan Stanley Direct | NYSE

Asset Management | NYSE, USA | Market Cap: 1.293m USD | 12M Return: -1.6% | US61774A1034 | Charts, Fundamentals & Technical Analysis

Direct Lending, Private Credit, Middle-Market Debt, Acquisition Financing
Total Rating 31
Safety 48
Buy Signal -0.72
Asset Management
Industry Rotation: +2.7
Market Cap: 1.29B
Avg Turnover: 7.08M
Risk 3d forecast
Volatility18.6%
VaR 5th Pctl3.16%
VaR vs Median3.15%
Reward TTM
Sharpe Ratio-0.17
Rel. Str. IBD30.3
Rel. Str. Peer Group19.2
Character TTM
Beta0.513
Beta Downside0.519
Hurst Exponent0.420
Drawdowns 3y
Max DD29.68%
CAGR/Max DD-0.03
CAGR/Mean DD-0.06
EPS (Earnings per Share) EPS (Earnings per Share) of MSDL over the last years for every Quarter: "2021-06": null, "2021-09": null, "2021-12": null, "2022-03": null, "2022-06": null, "2022-09": null, "2022-12": null, "2023-03": null, "2023-06": null, "2023-09": null, "2023-12": 0.67, "2024-03": 0.63, "2024-06": 0.63, "2024-09": 0.6, "2024-12": 0.58, "2025-03": 0.52, "2025-06": 0.5, "2025-09": 0.5, "2025-12": 0.49, "2026-03": 0.47, "2026-06": 0.45,
Last SUE: 0.53
Qual. Beats: 0
Revenue Revenue of MSDL over the last years for every Quarter: 2021-06: 23.276, 2021-09: 26.564, 2021-12: 31.879, 2022-03: 29.134, 2022-06: 6.601, 2022-09: 24.309, 2022-12: 40.171, 2023-03: 66.509, 2023-06: 79.957, 2023-09: 98.804, 2023-12: 82.858, 2024-03: 76.568, 2024-06: 86.919, 2024-09: 85.001, 2024-12: 84.034, 2025-03: 65.439, 2025-06: 73.044, 2025-09: 64.684, 2025-12: 86.923, 2026-03: 75.057, 2026-06: 80.567,
Rev. CAGR: -3.11%
Rev. Trend: -42.4%
Last SUE: -0.31
Qual. Beats: 0

Warnings

Below Avwap Earnings

Tailwinds

No distinct edge detected

Seasonality 2.5 years of data

Jan +0.8% 29
Feb -5.4% 37
Mar +0.2% 0
Apr +5.2% 0
May +1.4% 38
Jun -0.2% 0
Jul -1.0% 31
Aug -2.6% -
Sep -8.1% -
Oct +5.9% -
Nov +2.5% -
Dec -0.8% -

How good or bad each month usually is (without trend). The score below shows how much you can trust it: 0 = pure chance, >40 gets interesting and >55 is strong.

Description: MSDL Morgan Stanley Direct

Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (MSDL) is a business development company (BDC) listed on the NYSE that primarily invests in below-investment-grade debt issued by middle-market companies or by private equity sponsors financing acquisitions.

As a BDC, MSDL operates under the Investment Company Act of 1940, a regulatory framework that permits it to lend directly to private and smaller borrowers that may have limited access to traditional bank financing. Direct lending funds typically generate income through interest payments and fees on these privately negotiated loans, offering investors exposure to the private credit market.

Headlines to Watch Out For
  • Floating-rate loan income rises with higher base rates
  • Middle-market default rates pressure NAV and dividend coverage
  • Private credit competition compresses underwriting spreads on new deals
Piotroski VR-10 (Strict) 6.0
Net Income: 59.7m TTM > 0 and > 6% of Revenue
FCF/TA: 0.08 > 0.02 and ΔFCF/TA 11.15 > 1.0
NWC/Revenue: 17.17% < 20% (prev 13.48%; Δ 3.70% < -1%)
CFO/TA 0.08 > 3% & CFO 282.9m > Net Income 59.7m
Net Debt (1.90b) to EBITDA (187.1m): 10.16 < 3
Current Ratio: 1.65 > 1.5 & < 3
Outstanding Shares: last quarter (84.8m) vs 12m ago -2.79% < -2%
Gross Margin: 73.35% > 18% (prev 56.02%; Δ 17.33% > 0.5%)
Asset Turnover: 8.05% > 50% (prev 7.84%; Δ 0.21% > 0%)
Interest Coverage Ratio: 1.20 > 6 (EBIT TTM 156.2m / Interest Expense TTM 129.9m)
Altman Z'' 1.13
A: 0.01 (Total Current Assets 134.1m - Total Current Liabilities 81.3m) / Total Assets 3.71b
B: -0.02 (Retained Earnings -92.6m / Total Assets 3.71b)
C: 0.04 (EBIT TTM 156.2m / Avg Total Assets 3.82b)
D: 0.80 (Book Value of Equity 1.65b / Total Liabilities 2.06b)
Altman-Z'' = 1.13 = BB
What is the price of MSDL shares?

As of August 23, 2026, the stock is trading at USD 15.36 with a total of 225,053 shares traded. Over the past week, the price has changed by -0.65%, over one month by +0.00%, over three months by +4.05% and over the past year by -1.63%.

Current recommended Stop Loss: 14.70 (which is 4.3% or 2.1 ATR below the current price).

Is MSDL a buy, sell or hold?

Morgan Stanley Direct has received a consensus analysts rating of 3.17. Therefore, it is recommended to hold MSDL.

  • StrongBuy: 0
  • Buy: 1
  • Hold: 5
  • Sell: 0
  • StrongSell: 0

What are the forecasts/targets for the MSDL price?
Analysts Target Price 15.7 2.3%
Morgan Stanley Direct (MSDL) - Fundamental Data Overview as of 21 August 2026
Market Cap USD = 1.29b (1.29b USD * 1.0 USD.USD)
P/E Trailing = 22.2754
P/E Forward = 8.4459
P/S = 3.4549
P/B = 0.7845
Revenue TTM = 307.2m USD
EBIT TTM = 156.2m USD
EBITDA TTM = 187.1m USD
 Long Term Debt = unknown (none)
 Short Term Debt = unknown (none)
 Debt = 1.98b USD (from shortLongTermDebtTotal, last quarter)
Net Debt = 1.90b USD (calculated: Debt 1.98b - CCE 80.2m)
Enterprise Value = 3.19b USD (1.29b + Debt 1.98b - CCE 80.2m)
Interest Coverage Ratio = 1.20 (Ebit TTM 156.2m / Interest Expense TTM 129.9m)
EV/FCF = 11.29x (Enterprise Value 3.19b / FCF TTM 282.9m)
FCF Yield = 8.86% (FCF TTM 282.9m / Enterprise Value 3.19b)
FCF Margin = 92.09% (FCF TTM 282.9m / Revenue TTM 307.2m)
Net Margin = 19.45% (Net Income TTM 59.7m / Revenue TTM 307.2m)
Gross Margin = 73.35% ((Revenue TTM 307.2m - Cost of Revenue TTM 81.9m) / Revenue TTM)
Gross Margin QoQ = 80.44% (prev 79.63%)
Tobins Q-Ratio = 0.86 (Enterprise Value 3.19b / Total Assets 3.71b)
Interest Expense / Debt = 6.56% (Interest Expense 129.9m / Debt 1.98b)
Taxrate = 5.94% (3.62m / 60.9m)
NOPAT = 146.9m (EBIT 156.2m * (1 - 5.94%))
Current Ratio = 1.65 (Total Current Assets 134.1m / Total Current Liabilities 81.3m)
Debt / Equity = 1.20 (Debt 1.98b / totalStockholderEquity, last quarter 1.65b)
Debt / EBITDA = 10.16 (Net Debt 1.90b / EBITDA 187.1m)
Debt / FCF = 6.72 (Net Debt 1.90b / FCF TTM 282.9m)
Total Stockholder Equity = 1.71b (last 4 quarters mean from totalStockholderEquity)
RoA = 1.57% (Net Income 59.7m / Total Assets 3.71b)
RoE = 3.48% (Net Income TTM 59.7m / Total Stockholder Equity 1.71b)
RoCE = 4.30% (EBIT 156.2m / Capital Employed (Total Assets 3.71b - Current Liab 81.3m))
RoIC = 4.07% (NOPAT 146.9m / Invested Capital 3.61b)
WACC = 6.81% (E(1.29b)/V(3.27b) * Re(7.79%) + D(1.98b)/V(3.27b) * Rd(6.56%) * (1-Tc(0.06)))
Discount Rate = 7.79% (= CAPM, Blume Beta Adj.)
Shares (quarterly) Correlation: -79.17 | Cagr: -1.34%
[DCF] Terminal Value 75.44% ; FCFF base≈282.9m ; Y1≈284.1m ; Y5≈300.9m
[DCF] Fair Price = 33.04 (EV 4.68b - Net Debt 1.90b = Equity 2.78b / Shares 84.1m; r=8.35% [WACC [floored]]; 5y FCF grow 0.0% → 2.50% )
EPS Correlation: N/A | EPS CAGR: N/A | SUE: 0.53 | # QB: 0
Revenue Correlation: -42.41 | Revenue CAGR: -3.11% | SUE: -0.31 | # QB: 0
EPS current Quarter (2026-09-30): EPS=0.44 | Chg30d=-4.56% | Revisions=-25% | Analysts=7
EPS current Year (2026-12-31): EPS=1.80 | Chg30d=-1.64% | Revisions=+0% | GrowthEPS=-10.5% | GrowthRev=-10.8%
EPS next Year (2027-12-31): EPS=1.81 | Chg30d=-1.19% | Revisions=+0% | GrowthEPS=+0.3% | GrowthRev=+0.4%
[Analyst] Revisions Ratio: -12% (up=2, down=3)