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Beyond Oil Price Swings: 3 Midstream Stocks Built for Resilience

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Key Takeaways

  • Kinder Morgan relies on take-or-pay contracts to generate stable fee-based revenues.
  • MPLX benefits from long-term shipper contracts and fee-based gathering systems.
  • Williams connects key U.S. basins and serves demand for natural gas and clean-energy generation.

The outlook for the U.S.-Iran conflict is uncertain, so the crude pricing environment will remain volatile. West Texas Intermediate crude, which was trading above $100 per barrel, has declined and is now hovering around $90. However, not all stocks are exposed to the vulnerability in crude price movements. Three midstream players like Kinder Morgan, Inc. (KMI - Free Report) , MPLX LP (MPLX - Free Report) and The Williams Companies, Inc. (WMB - Free Report) are well-poised to weather the Middle East tension-induced uncertainty. Let's delve deeper.

Resilient Business Model of Midstream Business

Stocks in the midstream space have lower exposure to volatility in commodity prices than oil and gas producers. This is because midstream players generate stable fee-based revenues since the transportation and storage assets are being booked by shippers for the long term. Hence, their business model is relatively low-risk, which indicates considerably less exposure to oil and gas prices and volume risks.

3 Pipeline Stocks to Keep an Eye on: KMI, MPLX & WMB

Kinder Morgan: With its operating interests in oil and gas pipeline networks spread across 78,000 miles, KMI is a leading energy infrastructure company in North America. It derives most of its earnings from take-or-pay contracts, generating stable fee-based revenues.

The midstream energy major, carrying a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), is likely to grow on the back of its business model, which is relatively resilient to volume and commodity price risks. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

MPLX: MPLX’s midstream business comprises transporting crude oil and refined products. The #3 Ranked partnership generates stable cash flows from its long-term contracts with the shippers. Its crude oil and natural gas gathering systems also generate stable fee-based revenues.

The Williams Companies: The company is well-poised to capitalize on the mounting demand for clean energy since it is engaged in transporting, storing, gathering and processing natural gas and natural gas liquids.

With its pipeline networks spread across more than 30,000 miles, The Williams Companies, with a Zacks Rank of 3, connects premium basins in the United States to the key market. WMB’s assets can meet a considerable proportion of the nation’s natural gas consumption, which is utilized for heating purposes and clean-energy generation.

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