Should You Buy MPLX LP (MPLX)?

As industrywide interest jumped, key money managers have jumped into MPLX LP (NYSE:MPLX) headfirst. Zimmer Partners assembled the most outsized position in MPLX LP (NYSE:MPLX). Zimmer Partners had $4.8 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. George Hall’s Clinton Group also initiated a $4.4 million position during the quarter. The other funds with brand new MPLX positions are David Atterbury’s Whetstone Capital Advisors, Paul Marshall and Ian Wace’s Marshall Wace LLP, and Richard Driehaus’ Driehaus Capital.

Let’s check out hedge fund activity in other stocks similar to MPLX LP (NYSE:MPLX). We will take a look at American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO), Industrias Bachoco, S.A.B. de C.V. (ADR) (NYSE:IBA), TC Pipelines, LP (NYSE:TCP), and RR Donnelley & Sons Co (NASDAQ:RRD). This group of stocks’ market caps are closest to MPLX’s market cap.

As you can see these stocks had an average of 19 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $165 million. That figure was just $50 million in MPLX’s case. American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) is the most popular stock in this table, while TC Pipelines, LP (NYSE:TCP) is the least popular one with only 4 bullish hedge fund positions. MPLX LP (NYSE:MPLX) is not the least popular stock in this group, but hedge fund interest is still below average. This is a slightly negative signal and we’d rather spend our time researching stocks that hedge funds are piling on. In this regard AEO might be a better candidate to consider a long position.