Is EQT Midstream Partners LP (EQM) A Good Stock To Buy?

As one would reasonably expect, some big names were leading the bulls’ herd. Millennium Management, managed by Israel Englander, initiated the most valuable position in EQT Midstream Partners LP (NYSE:EQM). Millennium Management had $4 million invested in the company at the end of the quarter. David Atterbury’s Whetstone Capital Advisors also made a $2.9 million investment in the stock during the quarter. The only other fund with a brand new EQM position is Richard Driehaus’s Driehaus Capital.

Let’s also examine hedge fund activity in other stocks – not necessarily in the same industry as EQT Midstream Partners LP (NYSE:EQM) but similarly valued. We will take a look at Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (NASDAQ:MRVL), Aqua America Inc (NYSE:WTR), Dunkin Brands Group Inc (NASDAQ:DNKN), and B/E Aerospace Inc (NASDAQ:BEAV). This group of stocks’ market caps resemble EQM’s market cap.

As you can see these stocks had an average of 27.5 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $621 million. That figure was $73 million in EQM’s case. B/E Aerospace Inc (NASDAQ:BEAV) is the most popular stock in this table. On the other hand Aqua America Inc (NYSE:WTR) is the least popular one with only 11 bullish hedge fund positions. EQT Midstream Partners LP (NYSE:EQM) 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 BEAV might be a better candidate to consider a long position.