NEW YORK, August 08, 2024--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE: MSDL) ("MSDL" or the "Company"), a business development company externally managed by MS Capital Partners Adviser Inc. (the "Adviser"), today announced its financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2024.
"In the second quarter of 2024, our first full quarter operating as a public company, MSDL generated strong operating results," said Jeffrey Levin, President and Chief Executive Officer of Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund. "This performance was supported by continued credit stability in our portfolio of senior, sponsor-backed middle market loans."
QUARTERLY HIGHLIGHTS
Net investment income of $56.1 million, or $0.63 per share;
Net asset value of $20.83 per share, as compared to $20.67 as of March 31, 2024;
Debt-to-equity was 0.90x as of June 30, 2024, as compared to 0.81x as of March 31, 2024;
New investment commitments of $673.9 million, fundings of $499.7 million and sales and repayments of $289.3 million, resulting in net funded deployment of $210.4 million; and
The Company’s Board of Directors (the "Board") declared a regular dividend of $0.50 per share, paid on July 25, 2024 to stockholders of record as of June 28, 2024.
SELECTED FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
For the Quarter Ended
June 30, 2024
March 31, 2024
Net investment income per share
$0.63
$0.63
Net realized and unrealized gains (losses) per share1
$0.03
($0.05)
Earnings per share
$0.66
$0.59
Regular dividend per share
$0.50
$0.50
As of
($ in thousands, except per share information)
June 30, 2024
March 31, 2024
Investments, at fair value
$3,514,286
$3,293,205
Total debt outstanding, at principal
$1,675,474
$1,492,257
Net assets
$1,861,961
$1,837,027
Net asset value per share
$20.83
$20.67
Debt to equity
0.90x
0.81x
Net debt to equity
0.85x
0.77x
1 Amount shown may not correspond for the period as it includes the effect of the timing of the distribution and the issuance of common stock.
RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
Total investment income for the second quarter ended June 30, 2024 was $104.2 million, compared to $99.1 million for the first quarter ended March 31, 2024. The increase was driven by deployment of capital and prepayment related income.
Total expenses for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 were $48.1 million, compared to $44.5 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2024. The increase in expenses quarter over quarter was attributable to higher interest and other financing expenses driven by an increase in weighted average debt outstanding.
Net investment income for the quarter ended June 30, 2024 was $56.1 million, or $0.63 per share, compared to $54.7 million, or $0.63 per share, for the quarter ended March 31, 2024.
For the quarter ended June 30, 2024, net change in unrealized appreciation on investments was $2.8 million.
PORTFOLIO AND INVESTMENT ACTIVITY
As of June 30, 2024, the Company’s investment portfolio had a fair value of approximately $3.5 billion, comprised of 192 portfolio companies across 34 industries, with an average investment size of $18.3 million, or 0.5% of our total portfolio on a fair value basis. The composition of the Company’s investments was the following:
June 30, 2024
March 31, 2024
($ in thousands)
Cost
Fair Value
% of Total Investments at Fair Value
Cost
Fair Value
% of Total Investments at Fair Value
First Lien Debt
$3,356,586
$3,345,743
95.3%
$3,131,129
$3,115,404
94.6%
Second Lien Debt
122,416
103,144
2.9
136,708
118,107
3.6
Other Debt Investments
9,289
8,467
0.2
3,430
2,163
0.1
Equity
53,735
56,932
1.6
52,500
57,531
1.7
Total
$3,542,035
$3,514,286
100.0%
$3,323,767
$3,293,205
100.0%
Investment activity for the three months ended June 30, 2024 and March 31, 2024, was as follows:
Investment Activity:
June 30, 2024
March 31, 2024
New investment commitments, at par
$673,902
$232,120
Investment fundings
$499,684
$168,357
Number of new Investment commitments in portfolio companies
22
9
Number of portfolio companies exited or fully repaid
8
3
Total weighted average yield of investments in debt securities at amortized cost and fair value was 11.6% and 11.7%, respectively, as of June 30, 2024, compared to 11.9% and 12.0%, respectively, as of March 31, 2024. Floating rate debt investments as a percentage of total portfolio on a fair value basis was 99.6% as of June 30, 2024, compared to 99.9% as of March 31, 2024. As of June 30, 2024, portions of two portfolio companies were on non-accrual status, representing approximately 0.3% of total investments at amortized cost.
CAPITAL AND LIQUIDITY
As of June 30, 2024, the Company had total principal debt outstanding of $1,675.5 million, including $194.0 million outstanding in the Company’s BNP funding facility, $431.5 million outstanding in the Company’s Truist credit facility, $275.0 million outstanding in the Company’s senior unsecured notes due September 2025, $425.0 million outstanding in the Company’s senior unsecured notes due February 2027 and $350.0 million outstanding in the Company’s newly issued senior unsecured notes due May 2029. The combined weighted average interest rate on debt outstanding was 6.57% for the quarter ended June 30, 2024. As of June 30, 2024, the Company had $1,270.4 million of availability under its credit facilities and $93.0 million in unrestricted cash. Debt to equity was 0.90x and 0.81x as of June 30, 2024 and March 31, 2024, respectively.
OTHER DEVELOPMENTS
On August 6, 2024, the Board declared a distribution of $0.50 per share, which is payable on October 25, 2024 to shareholders of record as of September 30, 2024.
The Board previously declared a $0.10 per share special dividend to shareholders of record as of August 5, 2024.
In July, Moody’s affirmed MSDL’s Baa3 (stable) rating.
CONFERENCE CALL INFORMATION
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund will host a conference call on Friday, August 9, 2024 at 10:00 am ET to review its financial results and conduct a question-and-answer session. All interested parties are invited to participate in the live earnings conference call by using the following dial-in numbers or audio webcast link available on the MSDL Investor Relations website:
To avoid potential delays, please join at least 10 minutes prior to the start of the earnings call. An archived replay will also be available on the MSDL Investor Relations website.
About Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund
Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund (NYSE: MSDL) is a non-diversified, externally managed specialty finance company focused on lending to middle-market companies. MSDL has elected to be regulated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. MSDL is externally managed by MS Capital Partners Adviser Inc., an indirect, wholly owned subsidiary of Morgan Stanley. MSDL is not a subsidiary of or consolidated with Morgan Stanley. For more information about Morgan Stanley Direct Lending Fund, please visit www.msdl.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements included herein or on the webcast/conference call may constitute "forward-looking statements," which relate to future events or MSDL’s future performance or financial condition. These statements are not guarantees of future performance, condition or results and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual results and conditions may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors, including those described from time to time in MSDL’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. MSDL undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statements made herein or on the webcast/conference call.
Consolidated Statements of Assets and Liabilities
(In thousands, except share and per share amounts)
As of
June 30, 2024
December 31, 2023
(Unaudited)
(Audited)
Assets
Non-controlled/non-affiliated investments, at fair value (amortized cost of $3,542,035 and $3,226,776)
$
3,514,286
$
3,193,561
Cash and cash equivalents (restricted cash of $2,000 and $0)
94,966
69,705
Deferred financing costs
17,000
14,317
Interest and dividend receivable from non-controlled/non-affiliated investments
27,594
28,884
Subscription receivable
—
41
Receivable for investments sold/repaid
136
173
Prepaid expenses and other assets
1,917
53
Total assets
3,655,899
3,306,734
Liabilities
Debt (net of unamortized debt issuance costs of $8,331 and $5,564)
1,664,423
1,496,032
Payable for investment purchased
31,469
8
Payable to affiliates (Note 3)
1,508
2,870
Dividends payable
44,704
49,968
Management fees payable
6,479
2,012
Income based incentive fees payable
9,903
11,766
Interest payable
20,664
18,823
Accrued expenses and other liabilities
14,788
4,104
Total liabilities
1,793,938
1,585,583
Commitments and Contingencies (Note 7)
Net assets
Preferred stock, $0.001 par value (1,000,000 shares authorized; no shares issued and outstanding)
—
—
Common stock, par value $0.001 (100,000,000 shares authorized; 89,407,009 and 83,278,831 shares issued and outstanding)
89
83
Paid-in capital in excess of par value
1,831,835
1,712,609
Total distributable earnings (loss)
30,037
8,459
Total net assets
$
1,861,961
$
1,721,151
Total liabilities and net assets
$
3,655,899
$
3,306,734
Net asset value per share
$
20.83
$
20.67
Consolidated Statements of Operations (unaudited)
(In thousands, except share amounts)
For the Three Months Ended
For the Six Months Ended
June 30, 2024
June 30, 2023
June 30, 2024
June 30, 2023
Investment Income:
From non-controlled/non-affiliated investments:
Interest income
$
99,072
$
86,573
$
193,703
$
168,290
Payment-in-kind
2,850
622
5,494
1,063
Dividend income
646
504
1,211
1,000
Other income
1,620
1,195
2,881
2,180
Total investment income
104,188
88,894
203,289
172,533
Expenses:
Interest and other financing expenses
29,302
27,907
56,562
54,574
Management fees
8,639
7,446
16,869
14,750
Income based incentive fees
11,554
10,138
22,890
19,519
Professional fees
1,687
847
2,904
2,088
Directors’ fees
128
88
274
168
Administrative service fees
17
60
42
114
General and other expenses
51
197
159
365
Total expenses
51,378
46,683
99,700
91,578
Management fees waiver (Note 3)
(2,160
)
(5,584
)
(5,257
)
(11,062
)
Incentive fees waiver (Note 3)
(1,651
)
—
(2,862
)
—
Net expenses
47,567
41,099
91,581
80,516
Net investment income (loss) before taxes
56,621
47,795
111,708
92,017
Excise tax expense
500
—
936
—
Net investment income (loss) after taxes
56,121
47,795
110,772
92,017
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss):
Net realized gain (loss) on non-controlled/non-affiliated investments
108
—
(5,517
)
122
Net change in unrealized appreciation (depreciation) on non-controlled/non-affiliated investments
2,816
8,647
5,474
8,080
Net realized and unrealized gain (loss)
2,924
8,647
(43
)
8,202
Net increase (decrease) in net assets resulting from operations
$
59,045
$
56,442
$
110,729
$
100,219
Net investment income (loss) per share (basic and diluted)
