Goldman's Safest And Riskiest Midstream Dividends

Following Kinder Morgan Inc (NYSE: KMI)’s high-profile 75 percent dividend cut, Goldman Sachs analyst Brian Singer released a new report this week discussing other midstream oil and gas stocks that could soon opt to follow Kinder Morgan’s lead by slashing dividends. In addition, Singer named several midstream plays that he believes have the safest dividends.

To assess the safety of current midstream dividends, Singer looked at forward distribution growth, leverage and coverage for any red flags of an imminent cut. Though Goldman is not currently predicting dividend cuts for any of its MLP coverage universe, that doesn’t mean all dividends are safe.

“We believe that the ‘margin of safety’ for lower-ranked stocks increases the likelihood of a cut if operational or financial trends deteriorate from our base case forecasts,” he explained.

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Riskiest Names

After crunching the numbers, Singer named the following as the midstream plays most at-risk of a dividend cut:

• Targa Resources Partners LP (NYSE: NGLS)
• NGL Energy Partners LP (NYSE: NGL)
• NuStar Energy L.P. (NYSE: NS)
• Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. (NYSE: PAA)
• Enbridge Energy Partners, L.P. (NYSE: EEP)

Safest Names

Investors in other midstream names should sleep relatively easy at night. Singer names the following Buy-rated stocks among the safest dividends in the space:

• Enterprise Products Partners L.P. (NYSE: EPD)
• EQT Midstream Partners LP (NYSE: EQM)
• Sunoco Logistics Partners L.P. (NYSE: SXL)

Disclosure: The author holds no position in the stocks mentioned.

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