<div id="readability-page-1"><p>Duff &amp; Phelps Investment Management Co. raised its position in  Mplx Lp (NYSE:MPLX - Free Report) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities &amp; Exchange Commission. The institutional investor  owned 1,971,331 shares of the pipeline company's stock after acquiring an additional 37,845 shares during the period. Duff &amp; Phelps Investment Management Co. owned about 0.19% of Mplx worth $94,348,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.</p><ul><li>Refiners, transporters surge: Niche energy markets defy oil slump</li></ul><p>Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC grew its position in shares of  Mplx by 5,070.0% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 977,794 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $46,797,000 after purchasing an additional 958,881 shares in the last quarter.  Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of  Mplx during the 4th quarter valued at about $41,917,000.  FMR LLC boosted its position in  Mplx by 387.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 823,467 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $36,611,000 after buying an additional 654,500 shares during the period.  Oppenheimer &amp; Co. Inc. grew its stake in  Mplx by 368.0% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer &amp; Co. Inc. now owns 188,057 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $9,000,000 after purchasing an additional 147,872 shares during the last quarter.  Finally, Walnut Private Equity Partners LLC grew its stake in  Mplx by 479.6% during the 4th quarter. Walnut Private Equity Partners LLC now owns 153,600 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $7,351,000 after purchasing an additional 127,100 shares during the last quarter. 24.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds. </p><h2>Mplx Trading Down 0.1 %</h2><p>NYSE MPLX opened at $53.69 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $54.90 billion, a PE ratio of 12.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.40. The firm's fifty day moving average is $53.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $48.73. Mplx Lp has a one year low of $39.56 and a one year high of $54.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.99. </p><ul><li>Equitrans Midstream Surges 40% On Debt Ceiling Deal</li></ul><p>Mplx (NYSE:MPLX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The pipeline company reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.04 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.07 billion. Mplx had a return on equity of 31.94% and a net margin of 36.18%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share.  Analysts expect that  Mplx Lp will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current year. </p><h2>Mplx Announces Dividend</h2><p>The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were paid a $0.9565 dividend. This represents a $3.83 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.13%. The ex-dividend date  was Monday, February 3rd. Mplx's payout ratio is presently 90.74%. </p><h2>Wall Street Analyst Weigh In</h2><ul><li>3 Top-Performing Energy MLPs Deliver Price Gains, High Yield</li></ul><p>Several brokerages have weighed in on MPLX. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Mplx from $56.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an &#34;equal weight&#34; rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com cut Mplx from a &#34;strong-buy&#34; rating to a &#34;buy&#34; rating in a research note on Sunday, March 2nd. Barclays upped their target price on Mplx from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an &#34;overweight&#34; rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Mplx from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an &#34;outperform&#34; rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Mplx from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an &#34;outperform&#34; rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. One analyst  has rated the stock with a sell rating, one  has issued  a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock  has an average rating of &#34;Moderate Buy&#34; and a consensus target price of $54.00.</p><p><b>Get Our Latest Stock Report on Mplx</b></p><h2>Insider Activity</h2><p>In other news, VP Shawn M. Lyon purchased 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $52.75 per share, with a total value of $211,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 25,299 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,334,522.25. This trade represents a 18.78 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. </p><h2>About Mplx</h2> (Free Report)<p>MPLX LP engages in the operation of midstream energy infrastructure and logistics assets, and distribution fuels services. It operates through the Logistics and Storage (L&amp;S) and Gathering and Processing (G&amp;P) segments. The Logistics and Storage segment transports, stores, distributes, and markets crude oil, asphalt, refined petroleum products, and water.</p><h2>See Also</h2><ul><li>Five stocks we like better than Mplx</li><li>Following Congress Stock Trades</li><li>Penny Stock SurgePays Rises 70%: 1 Reason to Buy, 5 to Sell </li><li>What is the MACD Indicator and How to Use it in Your Trading</li><li>Top 3 Beverage Stocks Pouring Out Profits</li><li>What is a Special Dividend?</li><li>CarMax and Carvana: Steering the Used Car Market</li></ul><p><strong>Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MPLX?</strong> Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Mplx Lp (NYSE:MPLX - Free Report).</p><p><img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPU1QTFg?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="650" height="350" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/SECFilingChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPU1QTFg"/></p><p><em>This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.</em></p><h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in Mplx Right Now?</h2><p>Before you consider Mplx, you'll want to hear this.</p><p>MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Mplx wasn't on the list.</p><p>While Mplx currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.</p><p>View The Five Stocks Here</p>                  </div>

MPLX

<p>Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. increased its stake in Mplx Lp (NYSE:MPLX) by 2.0% in Q4, owning 1,971,331 shares valued at $94.35 million. Other institutional investors also raised their positions significantly. Mplx's stock opened at $53.69, with a market cap of $54.90 billion and a PE ratio of 12.75. The company reported $1.07 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.9565. Analysts have mixed ratings, with target prices ranging from $55.00 to $62.00.</p>

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. Has $94.35 Million Stock Position in Mplx Lp (NYSE:MPLX)