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Prior Updates Apr 06 Mar 06 Feb 06 Jan 06 2005 Updates Dec Nov Oct Sept Aug July Jun May Aprl Mar Feb Jan 2004 Updates Dec Nov Oct Sept Aug July Jun May Intro MLP & Energy News Oil Online MLP Blog Petro News Util/MLP Blog Yahoo News MLP Intro Wachovia Primer R James Primer Alerian Primer Market Stats MLPs at Yahoo MLPs at CNN MLPs at Excite MarketWatch MLPs at MSN MLPs at WSJ Factoids April March February January REIT Updates April Off/Ind/Apt April Retail/Hlth Bank Updates April March February January |
On the afternoon of 5-26 the 06 & 07 EPS estimates were updated, with increases in the estimates for EEP, MMP, MWE and PAA - and decreases for BPL, HEP, TCLP, PPX, USS and XTEX. Composite DCF numbers - which are used in the Distribution/DCF ratio in the first spreadsheet, and the forecaster spreadsheet, were updated 5-24. I have the May numbers from two of the three brokerages [all but brokerage C]. In two cases, where brokerage C had numbers out of sync with the others, C's estimates were ignored. There were signifigant shifts in the Distribution/DCF Ratio due to changes in the DCF estimates. Those with rising ratios [which is a bad thing]: BPL went from 83% to 93%, EPD went from 89% to 96%, ETP went from 56% to 60%, and XTEX went from 81% to 95%. Those with falling ratios: MMP went from 91% to 82%, PAA went from 85% to 77% and USS went from 151% to 136%. And those with rising ratios also had improvements in the Forecaster spreadsheet. Examples: MMP went from undervalued by 5.72% to undervalued by 9.12%, PAA went from undervalued by 5.39% to undervalued by 8.80%, and USS went from overvalued by 7.17% to overvalued by 4.68%. Distribution announcements: EPD announced an increase on the 4-17, CPNO and NBP on 4-18, KMP & TLP on 4-19, PAA & SXL on 4-20, MWE, PPX and XTEX on 4-21, VLI on 4-24, HEP on 4-25, APL, HLND, MMG and MMP on 4-26, WPZ on 4-27, BWP on 5-01, TGP on 5-04 - ETP announced in March. The Q2 distributions are used in the yield calculations below. With the ten year treasury ending April at 5.07%, the MLP midstream spread was uncomfortably low at 161 basis points. For April the MLP midstream sector was up 1.18%, with pipelines up 1.51%. The sector average yield is 6.99% [vs. 6.56% at March's end - up 43 basis points due to strong distribution increases], and with the average pipeline yielding 6.62% [vs. 6.48% at March's end - up 14 basis points]. The closed-end fund average yield was 6.63% vs. 6.67% at March's end. The GP average yield was 3.32%. For March the MLP midstream sector was up 2.13%, with pipelines up 2.40%. The sector average yield is 6.56% [vs. 6.68% at February's end - down 12 basis points], with the average pipeline yielding 6.48% [vs. 6.61% at February's end - down 13 basis points] and the closed-end fund average yield is 6.67%. With the ten year treasury at 4.85%, the MLP midstream spread is at 171 basis points [vs. 213 on 2-28] and the pipeline spread is 163 [vs. 206 on 2-28]. With the ten year treasury ending February 4.55%, the MLP midstream spread was at 213 basis points and the pipeline spread was 206. As of 12-30, with the ten year treasury at 4.40% and the MLP sector yielding 6.92%, the spread of MLPs over the yield of the 10 year stood at 252 basis points. BWP Has Strong Q1 BusinessWire 5-01 Boardwalk Pipeline Partners announced its results for the quarter ended March 31, 2006, which included the following items: [1]Income before income taxes of $69.7 million for the three months ended March 31, 2006, an 11% increase from $62.8 million in the comparable 2005 period. [2]Operating revenues of $174.4 million for the three months ended March 31, 2006, a 16% increase from $150.4 million in the comparable 2005 period. [3] Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of $104.0 million for the three months ended March 31, 2006, a 10% increase from $94.7 million in the comparable 2005 period. [4] The Company has declared a quarterly distribution of $0.36 per unit, a $0.01 per unit increase from the $0.35 per unit minimum quarterly distribution disclosed in the Company's November 2005 initial public offering (IPO). Sunoco Logistics Partners Announces Public Offering and Sale of Senior Notes PRNewswire 5-01 Sunoco Logistics Partners announced that it plans to offer 2.4 million common units and that its wholly owned subsidiary, Sunoco Logistics Partners Operations L.P., plans to offer $175 million of senior notes in concurrent offerings. SXL intends to use the combined net proceeds from these offerings to repay indebtedness outstanding under Sunoco Logistics Partners Operations L.P.'s revolving credit facility, to fund a portion of the Partnership's 2006 organic growth program. Williams Partners Announces Strong Q1 PRNewswire 5-01 Williams Partners announced unaudited net income of $4.2 million, or 35 cents per unit, compared with net income of $0.3 million during Q1-05. Distributable cash flow for Williams Partners and its 40% interest in Discovery totaled $8.9 million during the first quarter this year. That amount compares with $5.5 million during Q1-05. Adjusted EBITDA for Williams Partners and its 40 percent interest in Discovery totaled $8.9 million for the first quarter of 2006, up from $6.5 million for Q1-05. The favorable quarter-over-quarter results for distributable cash flow and adjusted EBITDA are primarily related to higher storage revenues and the effect of incremental volumes on Discovery that are related to the natural gas temporarily stranded as a result of hurricane damage to other parties' infrastructure. Crosstex & Devon to Acquire Barnett Shale Assets From Chief PRNewswire 5-02 Crosstex Energy, L.P. announced that it will acquire the natural gas gathering pipeline systems and related facilities of privately- owned Chief Holdings LLC in the fast-growing Barnett Shale play for $480 million, subject to customary adjustments at closing. The transaction is the result of a joint bid by Crosstex and Devon Energy to acquire Chief's assets. Devon, the Barnett Shale's largest producer, has simultaneously entered into an agreement to acquire Chief's oil and gas properties in the Barnett Shale. Chief is currently the third largest producer in the area. The Chief gathering systems link Crosstex's existing facilities and other pipelines with 328 existing producing wells and thousands of new wells expected to be drilled in the future across nine North Texas counties. XTEX currently anticipates financing at least 50% of the acquisition price with newly issued subordinated units, and the remainder will be financed with debt. The subordinated units would not participate in distributions for the first eighteen months after the close, and would then convert to common units. XTEX believes that at that point, Devon's expanded drilling program will have had an opportunity to increase production and cash flows from the system to support distributions on the subordinated units as they convert to common units. XTEX expects to directly place up to 60% of these units with Crosstex Energy [XTXI] and an additional amount directly with certain members of the Board or their affiliates. Based on a 1:1 coverage of distributable cash flow, the acquisition is expected to add approximately 20 to 30 cents to the 2007 and 2008 distributions. After 2008, the strategic value of the acquisition is expected to be evidenced by more material increases in the distribution, as production accelerates in the Barnett Shale area. Northern Border Partners Net Income Down, DCF Up Businesswire 5-02 Northern Border Partners reported Q1-06 net income of $34.7 million, or $0.67/unit, compared with net income of $34.7 million, or $0.69/unit for Q1-05. Cash flow, as measured by EBITDA, was $91.8 million for Q1-06, up from $90.7 million in Q1-05. Distributable cash flow (DCF) for Q1-06 was $52.9 million, or $1.05/unit, compared with $44.1 million, or $0.89/unit in Q1-05. The interstate natural gas pipeline segment contributed net income of $31.9 million for Q1-06, compared with $32.1 million in Q1-05. Net income from the natural gas gathering and processing segment was $19.6 million in Q1-06, compared with $13.7 million in Q1-05. This represents an increase of 43%, resulting from increased volumes in both the Powder River Basin joint-venture pipelines and in the Williston Basin operations, as well as increased margins, due to higher natural gas and NGLs prices, in the Williston Basin. The partnership is reiterating its previous guidance. Net income for 2006 is still expected to range from $426 million to $446 million, or $4.43 to $4.69 per unit. Net income and EBITDA are expected to include a one-time gain of $108 million, or $1.44 per unit, on the sale of the 20 percent interest in Northern Border Pipeline. EBITDA is expected to be in the range of $630 million to $650 million. Distributable cash flow is expected to be in the range of $324 million to $344 million, or $3.96 to $4.23 per unit. Atlas Pipeline Partners Net Income $0.46/unit, compared Q1-05's $0.39/unit Businesswire 5-02 Atlas Pipeline Partners today reported EBITDA of $20.2 million for Q1-06 compared with $7.3 million for Q1-05, an increase of $12.9 million or over 175%. Net income for Q1-06 was $9.5 million, or $0.46/unit, compared with $4.3 million for Q1-05, or $0.39/unit. The period over period increase in EBITDA and net income was principally related to contributions from the acquisitions of a 75% interest in NOARK Pipeline in October 2005 and ETC Oklahoma Pipeline ("Elk City") in April 2005 and continued growth in the Partnership's Appalachian operations. The Mid-Continent segment recognized total revenue of $109.8 million for Q1-06, an increase of $67.5 million from Q1-05. This increase principally reflects the contributions from the acquisitions of NOARK, Elk City and a $2.4 million increase in Velma system revenues due to an increase in commodity prices. Velma's gross natural gas gathered volume averaged 60.7 MMcfd for Q1-06 vs. 65.0 MMcfd in Q1-05 due to a decline in low margin volume. For the Elk City system, gross natural gas gathered volume averaged 252.2 MMcfd. For the NOARK system, average throughput volume was 239.2 MMcfd. Total revenue for the Appalachia system increased to $8.0 million for Q1-06, a 62% increase from $5.0 million for Q1-05. Appalachia segment profit was $5.4 million for Q1-06, or 32% of total segment operating profit for the period, compared with $2.8 million, or 44% of total segment operating profit for Q1-05. Average transportation rate per thousand cubic feet increased to $1.53 for Q1-06 from $1.03 for Q1-05 due mainly to the rise in realized natural gas prices, including the higher prices associated with hedge transactions. Throughput volume increased to 57.3 MMcfd for Q1-06 compared with 52.4 MMcfd for Q1-05 due to two major transmission line connections completed during Q1-06. During Q1-06, 189 new wells were connected to the gathering system compared with 93 wells connected during Q1-05. TEPPCO Income from Continuing Operations $0.43/unit, compared Q1-05's $0.53/unit Businesswire 5-02 TEPPCO reported net income for Q1-06 of $62.9 million or $0.63/unit, compared with net income of $47.4 million or $0.54/unit for Q1-05. Excluding the impact of the sale of the Pioneer gas processing plant, which is being accounted for as discontinued operations, income from continuing operations for Q1-06 was $43.4 million, or $0.43/unit, compared with $46.3 million, or $0.53/unit, for Q1-05. The sale of the plant, which occurred on March 31, 2006, resulted in a gain of $17.9 million. The upstream segment includes crude oil transportation, storage, gathering and marketing activities; and distribution of lubrication oils and specialty chemicals. EBITDA for the upstream segment increased 24% to $20.7 million for Q1-06, compared with $16.7 million for Q1-05. The increase in EBITDA resulted primarily from increased marketing and transportation margins, partially offset by higher pipeline operating, maintenance, and general and administrative expenses. Total crude oil volumes marketed increased 20 percent to 588,000 barrels per day (bpd), compared with 492,000 bpd for Q1-05. Transportation volumes decreased 6 percent to 248,000 bpd, compared with 264,000 bpd for Q1-05. The midstream segment includes natural gas gathering services, and storage, transportation and fractionation of natural gas liquids. EBITDA from continuing operations for the midstream segment was $41.3 million for Q1-06, compared with $36.9 million for Q1-05. The increase was primarily due to increased natural gas gathering and NGL transportation volumes, partially offset by higher operating, general and administrative expense and expenses related to the completion of the Jonah Phase IV expansion. Total natural gas gathering volumes increased 9%, to approximately 1.7 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in Q1-06, compared with approximately 1.6 Bcf/d in Q1-05. Total NGL transportation volumes increased by 15%, to approximately 176,000 bpd in Q1-06, compared with approximately 154,000 bpd in Q1-05. The downstream segment includes the transportation and storage of refined products, liquefied petroleum gases (LPGs) and petrochemicals. Downstream EBITDA was $37.9 million for Q1-06, compared with $44.5 million for Q1-05. The decrease was primarily due to lower LPG transportation volumes as a result of warmer winter weather in 2006, lower refined products transportation volumes and higher operating expenses. The decreased refined products transportation volumes were due to lower demand for products supplied from the U.S. Gulf Coast into Midwest markets, compared with unusually high demand in Q1-05 due to refinery downtime in Chicago, Illinois. Based on our first quarter performance and projections for the remainder of the year, we expect EBITDA for the full year of 2006 to remain in the range of $400 million to $420 million, and net income per unit to remain in the range of $1.70 to $1.90 per unit, excluding the results from discontinued operations. PAA Rports Net Income of $0.71/unit, compared Q1-05's $0.43/unit PRNewswire 5-03 Plains All American Pipeline reported Q1-06 net income of $63.4 million, equivalent to $0.71/unit, an increase of 93% and 65%, respectively, over net income of $32.8 million, or $0.43/unit, for Q1-05. EBITDA for Q1-06 were $100.3 million, an increase of 51% as compared with of $66.5 million for Q1-05. Adjusting for selected items impacting comparability, the Partnership's Q1-06 adjusted net income, adjusted net income per limited partner unit and adjusted EBITDA were $69.3 million, $0.82/unit and $106.2 million, respectively. By way of comparison, PAA's Q1-05 adjusted net income, adjusted net income per limited partner unit and adjusted EBITDA were $49.2 million, $0.67/unit, and $82.9 million, respectively. On a comparable basis, Q1-06 adjusted net income, adjusted net income per diluted limited partner unit and adjusted EBITDA increased 41%, 22% and 28%, respectively, over Q1-05. Adjusted segment profit from pipeline operations in Q1-06 was $42.9 million, which was in-line with the high-end of our financial guidance range but was approximately $8.5 million lower than our adjusted segment profit of $51.4 million for Q1-05. The decrease from Q1-05's adjusted segment profit is due primarily to an increase in operating expenses associated with an increase in personnel and related costs and utilities. Utilities increased $4.1 million over the prior year period. Adjusted segment profit from our gathering, marketing, terminalling and storage operations for Q1-06 was $63.2 million, up approximately 101% over Q1-05 primarily as a result of an expanded asset base and continued favorable market conditions. TGP Rports Net Income & Increases Distribution Businesswire 5-03 Teekay LNG Partners reported net income of $0.8 million for Q1-06, compared to net income of $41.9 million for Q1-05. The results for the Q1-06 and Q1-05 include a $7.8 million foreign currency exchange loss and a foreign currency exchange gain of $45.0 million, respectively, relating primarily to long-term debt denominated in Euros. Nearly all of Teekay LNG's foreign currency exchange gains and losses are unrealized. TGP's Euro-denominated revenues currently approximate its Euro-denominated expenses and debt service costs. As a result, TGP currently is not exposed materially to foreign currency fluctuations. But for accounting purposes TGP is required to revalue all foreign currency-denominated monetary assets and liabilities based on the prevailing exchange rate at the end of each reporting period. During Q1-06 GTP generated $17.6 million of distributable cash flow. Peter Evensen, CEO, said "Teekay LNG's accretive acquisition in November 2005 of three Suezmax vessels, all on long-term, fixed-rate time-charter contracts with ConocoPhillips, has enabled us to significantly increase cash distributions in our first year as a publicly-traded partnership. Based on the fixed-rate nature of our time-charter contracts, and the scheduled delivery dates of the three RasGas II LNG newbuildings, we are re-affirming our previously announced guidance of $1.85 per unit in annualized cash distributions through Q2-07, and an additional 14% increase to $2.10 per unit commencing in the third quarter of 2007." As previously announced, Teekay LNG has agreed to acquire from its parent company, Teekay Shipping Corporation (TK), its 70% interest in Teekay Nakilat Corporation (Teekay Nakilat), which owns three 151,700 cubic meter LNG newbuilding carriers that are subject to capital leases and are scheduled to deliver during Q4-06 and the first half of 2007. Upon their deliveries, the vessels will provide transportation services under 20-year, fixed-rate time charters, with inflation adjustments, to Ras Laffan Liquefied Natural Gas, a JV between a subsidiary of ExxonMobil and Qatar Petroleum. Qatar Gas Transport Company (QGTC) owns the remaining 30% interest in Teekay Nakilat. PPX Rports Net Income of $0.30/unit, compared Q1-05's $0.17/unit Businesswire 5-03 Pacific Energy Partners announced that net income for Q1-06 was $11.6 million, or $0.30/unit, compared to $3.4 million or $0.17/unit in Q1-05. Recurring net income for Q1-05 was $10.3 million, or $0.34/unit. Recurring net income for Q1-05 excluded a $2.0 million insurance deductible associated with the Line 63 oil release, a $3.1 million expense for the accelerated vesting of restricted units that resulted from the change of control of the general partner and $1.8 million of transaction costs related to the change of control. Distributable cash flow available to the limited partners' interest for Q1-06 was $21.5 million, compared to $13.0 million in Q1-05. EBITDA was $31.0 million for Q1-06 compared to $16.1 million in Q1-05. The results for Q1-06 reflect the benefit of the September 2005 acquisition of refined products terminals and a refined products pipeline from Valero and increased margins for Pacific Marketing and Transportation. Partially offsetting these increases were income reductions in the Rocky Mountain region caused by substantial downtime at a major Rocky Mountain refinery and lower tank utilization at Pacific Terminals. PPX incurred higher interest expense and there were approximately 32% more units outstanding compared to Q1-05, both attributable to the financing of the Valero asset acquisition. General and administrative costs were also higher this quarter. The West Coast Business Unit had operating income of $17.6 million for Q1-06 compared to $9.7 million in Q1-05, which period included a $2.0 million insurance deductible expense. This increase was primarily due to increased margins for Pacific Marketing and Transportation and the addition of the Northern California and East Coast terminals that were acquired in September 2005, from Valero. The Northern California terminals are operating at 100% capacity with 450,000 barrels of additional storage capacity currently under construction at Martinez. This storage is scheduled to be operational early in Q3-06. Due to strong customer demand, PPX plans to construct additional storage capacity at Martinez. PPX continues to advance development of the Pier 400 deepwater import terminal in the Port of LA. Long term volume commitments have been signed by Valero and ConocoPhillips. The estimated 250,000 barrels/day of offloading capacity is expected to be fully subscribed. Completion of construction and start-up are expected in the first half of 2008. The total investment is now estimated at $315 million and provides for four million barrels of storage capacity. The cost estimate was increased by approximately $65 million, principally to add an additional 1.0 million barrels of storage capacity with a commensurate increase in expected revenues. The Rocky Mountain Business Unit had operating income of $9.8 million for Q1-06 compared to $9.6 million in Q1-05. Extensive downtime in Q1-06 at a major Rocky Mountain refinery had a significant impact on income. Volumes on the Western Corridor and Salt Lake City Core pipeline systems increased by 8% and 14%, respectively. MarkWest Reports Q1-06 Net Income of $1.01 vs. $0.41 in Q1-05 PRNewswire 5-04 MarkWest Energy Partners reported net income of $13.9 million for the three months ended March 31, 2006, compared to net income of $4.3 million for Q1-05. For Q1-06, DCF was $23.6 million, compared to $12.3 million for Q1-05. Q1-06 was characterized by improved results of operations at every business segment, with one exception (Michigan), and segment operating income increased by $17.4 million, growing from $13.1 million in Q1-05 to $30.5 million in Q1-06. The change in net income in the first quarter of 2006 compared to the same period for 2005, was primarily attributable to: [1] Completion of the Javelina acquisition on 11-01-05, and these assets contributed $9.5 million of segment operating income. [2] The Carthage Gas Plant and NGL pipeline began operations in Q1 and contributed $4.5 million to the East Texas segment operating income. Gathering volumes increased on our Carthage, Appleby and Western Oklahoma systems in 2006 versus Q1-05. Higher NGL prices had a positive effect. [3] Our Northeast Business unit, consisting of our Appalachia and Michigan segments, had combined segment operating income increased by $1.0 million, primarily due to increased prices for our Maytown NGLs and reduced trucking expenses related to the completion of repairs of our ALPs pipeline. [4] Selling, general and administrative expense increased by $3.7 million. [5] There was a mark-to-market loss of $0.3 million for our 2006/2007 derivative instruments. This is a non-cash adjustment, and as such does not affect DCF. [6] The Starfish assets returned to partial service. [7] Interest expense was $7.6 million higher in 2006 over 2005, attributable to higher debt levels associated with the Javelina and Starfish acquisitions and the increase in interest rates. U.S. Shipping Partners Reports Q1-06 Net Income of $0.30 vs. $0.47 in Q1-05 PRNewswire 5-04 For Q106 USS reported net income of $4.2 million, a decrease of $2.4 million, or 37%, compared to $6.6 million for the three months ended March 31, 2005. The decrease is attributable to a decrease in operating income of $1.9 million primarily related to amortization of the recently completed scheduled drydockings of two vessels, the New York and Jacksonville, which are amortized over a five year period, as well as reduced revenue due to refinery outages related to hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Net income per unit, basic and diluted, was $0.30 for the three months ended March 31, 2006, as compared to $0.47 per unit for the three months ended March 31, 2005. EBITDA was $13.3 million for Q1-06, a decrease of $0.4 million, or 3%, from EBITDA of $13.7 million for Q1-05. The three months ended March 31, 2006 reflected increased general and administrative expenses of $0.5 million, including increased professional fees and additional expenses necessary to accommodate the growth of our business, including the addition of two vessels, the Houston and the Sea Venture. The Sea Venture is expected to be placed in service late May 2006. EBITDA is a non-GAAP measure explained in greater detail below under "Use of Non-GAAP Financial Information". Our distributable cash flow for the first quarter 2006 was $7.6 million, or approximately 1.20 times the amount needed to cover the cash distribution of $6.3 million declared in respect of the period. ETP & ETE Declare Increases in Unitholder Distribution Businesswire 5-08 Energy Transfer Partners announces a $0.20 increase in the annual cash distribution to $2.55 annually. This latest increase will go into effect with the Partnership's next quarterly distribution for the quarter ending May 31, 2006, making the quarterly distribution for such quarter equal to $0.6375 per common unit. Energy Transfer Equity announces a $0.15 per unit increase in the annual cash distributions. This latest increase will go into effect with ETE's next quarterly distribution for the quarter ending May 31, 2006, raising the annual distribution rate per unit to $0.95. The quarterly distribution of $0.2375 per unit (an annualized rate of $0.95 per common unit) will be paid on July 19, 2006 to holders of record as of close of business on June 30, 2006. This is a 19% increase in the annual rate of ETE's unitholder distribution. Atlas Pipeline Partners, L.P. Raises $20 Million Businesswire 5-09 Atlas Pipeline Partners L.P. announced that it has agreed to sell approximately $20 million of its common units to Wachovia Securities, which has offered the common units to public investors. The offering is expected to close on May 12th. APL granted Wachovia an over-allotment option. APL intends to use the net proceeds from the sale of its common units to partially repay borrowings under its credit facility made in connection with the recent acquisition of the remaining 25% interest in NOARK Pipeline System, Limited Partnership, previously owned by Southwestern Energy Company. Martin Midstream Partners Reports PRNewswire 5-09 MMLP reported net income for Q1-06 of $4.3 million, or $0.33/unit. This compared to net income for Q1-05 of $3.5 million, or $0.41/unit. Revenues for Q1-06 were $146.8 million compared to $96.1 million for Q1-05. Q1-06 net income was negatively impacted by a $1.2 million debt prepayment premium and positively impacted by a $0.9 million hurricane-related gain on involuntary conversion of assets. Together, these items negatively impacted net income by $0.3 million, or approximately $0.02 per limited partner unit. MMLP's distributable cash flow for the first quarter of 2006 was $7.3 million, compared to $5.2 million for Q1-05. TransMontaigne Partners L.P. Announces Results Businesswire 5-09 TransMontaigne Partners L.P. announced its net earnings allocable to limited partners of $2.7 million ($0.37 per limited partner unit) for the quarter ended March 31, 2006. The quarter's highlights include: [1] Quarterly revenues increased to $12.1 million from $9.7 million last year; [2] TLP executed a five-year terminaling services agreement with Marathon Petroleum Company LLC for approximately 1.0 million barrels of asphalt storage capacity throughout our Florida facilities; [3] Quarterly operating income increased to $3.5 million from $3.4 million last year; [4] Adjusted operating surplus generated during the period was $3.8 million; [5] TLP declared a $0.43 per unit quarterly distribution for the period. Donald H. Anderson, Chief Executive Officer, said: "The acquisition of the Mobile, Alabama terminal facilities from TransMontaigne Inc. contributed to the increase in quarterly throughput volumes from 135,700 barrels per day in 2005 to 146,600 barrels per day in 2006. This volume increase, combined with new third-party storage customers and other revenues, resulted in an increase in operating income to $3.5 million for the first quarter of 2006 compared to $3.4 million for the first quarter of 2005." Copano Energy Reports PRNewswire 5-09 Copano Energy, L.L.C. announced a 140% improvement in CPNO's operating income to $15.3 million for Q1-06 as compared to Q1-05, primarily as a result of our acquisition of ScissorTail Energy. Revenue for Q1-06 increased approximately 69% to $214.0 million from $126.9 million in Q1-05. Total gross margin increased from $14.6 million in Q1-05 to $36.5 million in Q1-06. Net income was $7.4 million, or $0.40 per unit on a diluted basis, for Q1-06 compared to net income of $5.4 million, or $0.51/unit for Q1-05. The weighted average diluted units outstanding during the three months ended March 31, 2006 and 2005 totaled approximately 18.3 million and 10.6 million, respectively. EBITDA for Q1-06 were $23.2 million, an increase of $15.0 million from EBITDA of $8.2 million for Q1-05. Distributable cash flow for Q1-06 (prior to any retained cash reserves established by Copano's board) equaled $16.5 million, representing 150% coverage of the increased Q1-06 distribution of $0.60 per unit based on the number of units outstanding on May 1, 2006, the first quarter distribution record date. Copano recorded non-cash amortization expense related to purchased put derivatives of $2.3 million which has not been added back in the determination of distributable cash flow. Highland Partners Reports PRNewswire 5-11 Hiland Partners reported quarterly net income for Q1-06 of $3.6 million compared to net income of $1.6 million for Q1-05, an increase of 117%. Net income/unit for Q1-06 increased to $0.37 per unit from income of $0.16 per unit in Q1-05, an increase of 131%. Adjusted EBITDA for Q1-06 was $8.4 million compared to $3.7 million for Q1-05, an increase of 129%. Total segment margin for Q1-06 was $11.9 million compared to $5.6 million for Q1-05, an increase of 113%. The increases are primarily attributable to higher average realized natural gas and NGL sales prices and the inclusion of the results of operations from the assets contributed to us by Hiland Partners, LLC (the Worland gathering system and compression assets) as part of our initial public offering on February 15, 2005 and the acquisition of Hiland Partners, LLC (the Bakken gathering system) effective September 1, 2005. Crosstex Announces Private Placement for $360 Million PRNewswire 5-17 Crosstex Energy, L.P. announced that it had executed agreements to issue approximately 12.8 million senior subordinated units for aggregate proceeds of $360 million. The units will convert to common units on February 16, 2008, and until that time, will not participate in the cash distributions of the Partnership. The financing is being done in order to fund a portion of the Partnership's agreement to acquire the natural gas gathering pipeline systems and related facilities of Chief Holdings. Crosstex Energy, Inc. [XTXI] has agreed to purchase $180 million of the senior subordinated units. To finance its purchase of the units, the Corporation has agreed to sell approximately 2.5 million shares of common stock in a private placement for approximately $180 million. FPSO's May Invade Deepwater GOM Lynn Cook, Houston Chronicle 5-02 The Gulf of Mexico is one rig shy of its all-time high, according to Chris Oynes of the U.S. Minerals Management Service. Currently, 46 exploration rigs are abuzz in the Gulf in water depths of 1,000 feet or more. Oynes expects the record of 47 rigs to be shattered soon. "We've literally been inching up one rig at a time over the last several weeks," he said. Rigs in the Gulf aren't exactly a new thing, but a Floating Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) facility would be if it gets the green light later this year. Oynes said several companies - both domestic and international - have approached the MMS about using FPSOs for their new deepwater developments and he expects to see a formal request before the year is out. Typically, oil and natural gas production platforms are mounted or moored to the ocean floor, making the massive steel structures fairly permanent installations. Oil and gas flowing forth from wells is then transported to shore through pipelines. By contrast, FPSOs are ship-shaped facilities that can produce oil from an underwater well, store it within the hold, and then offload it into a shuttle tanker that ferries it back to land. In addition to taking half the time to construct as a traditional platform, FPSOs can pull up stakes and leave before a hurricane hits, ensuring the asset won't get mangled and eliminating the need to evacuate workers by helicopter. Although there are more than 100 FPSOs in operation in places like Eastern Canada, the North Sea, the South China Sea and Brazil, none have been used in the Gulf yet. Oynes declined to name the companies that have approached the MMS about FPSOs. Petrobras America President Renato Bertani confirmed his company is seriously considering the option for its Cascade development with partners Devon Energy and operator BHP Billiton, as well as for two other deepwater prospects. NBP Becomes OKS /PRNewswire 5-17 Northern Border Partners, L.P. announced that it will change its name to ONEOK Partners, L.P. and will begin trading under the new symbol "OKS" on the New York Stock Exchange when trading opens on Monday, May 22, 2006. In addition, ONEOK Partners announced several changes in its governance. ONEOK [OKE] owns the general partner of ONEOK Partners and 45.7% of the partnership. In April 2006, ONEOK Partners purchased from ONEOK the gathering and processing, natural gas liquids and pipelines and storage segments for approximately $3 billion. In exchange, ONEOK received cash and limited partner units. PAA to Acquire Crude Pipeline from BP PRNewswire 5-24 Plains All American Pipeline subsidiary, Plains Pipeline L.P., has signed a definitive agreement to acquire interests in certain Gulf Coast crude oil pipeline systems from BP Oil Pipeline Company for approximately $133.5 million. The transaction is expected to close on June 30, 2006, subject to satisfaction of Hart-Scott-Rodino requirements and other customary closing conditions as well as the expiration of preferential purchase rights on certain of the assets. The assets to be acquired consist of a 100% interest in the Bay Marchand- to-Ostrica-to-Alliance Pipeline ("BOA"), a 64.35% interest in a segment of the Clovelly-to-Meraux Pipeline ("CAM") and various interests in segments of the High Island Pipeline System ("HIPS"). BOA and CAM are the two primary suppliers of ConocoPhillips' Alliance refinery, which is located in Belle Chasse, Louisiana. Substantially all of the acquired capacity on these two systems is subject to long-term leases whereby the pipeline owner receives an annual service payment and reimbursement for the vast majority of the pipeline's direct costs, as well as an annual index-based escalator. HIPS is a network of offshore gathering pipeline systems that delivers crude oil to various points in or around Texas City, Texas. Total pipeline mileage for these three systems is approximately 320 miles. "These quality assets will be an excellent addition to our existing crude oil operations in the Gulf Coast region," said Greg Armstrong, Chairman and CEO. "In addition, we expect the long-term contracts associated with these assets to provide stable, fee-based cash flow for many years to come." Armstrong stated that the multiple of purchase price to expected annual EBITDA from these assets is expected to be approximately 9.0x. PAA Increases Guidance PRNewswire 5-25 Plains All American announced that it expects to report second quarter financial results that will exceed the guidance ranges for adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net income and adjusted net income per limited partner unit that it furnished on Form 8-K on May 3, 2006. management now expects adjusted EBITDA for the second quarter to range from $115 million to $125 million. Management estimates that adjusted net income will range from $73.3 million to $84.5 million, and that adjusted net income per diluted limited partner unit will range from $0.82 to $0.96. The mid-points of the updated ranges exceed the mid-points of previous guidance ranges by 26%, 46% and 54%, respectively. Management Offers to take KMI Private PRNewswire 5-29 Kinder Morgan Chief Executive Richard Kinder and other executives are offering $100 a share for KMI. That's a 18% premium to Friday's closing price of $84.41 but shy of the stock's 52-week high. Kinder Morgan is tied into three different securities. The buyout target, Kinder Morgan Inc., is generally held by institutional investors. It is the general partner of KMP. Kinder Morgan Management, meanwhile, is a separate limited-liability company whose only significant assets are partnership units in Kinder Morgan Energy Partners. Under the proposal, Mr. Kinder and others would contribute $2.8 billion of their existing shares to the newly private company, with another $4.5 billion coming from private-equity investors Goldman Sachs Capital Partners, American International Group Inc. and the Carlyle Group and its Riverstone Holdings affiliate. If the deal is approved, the newly private Kinder Morgan would take on a total of $14.5 billion in debt, giving the transaction a total value of about $22 billion. The amount of economical, ready-to-capture gas - under existing wells within reach of pipelines - rose 15% during the four years ending in 2004, according to the latest federal data. The American Gas Association, a group of utilities, has made a preliminary estimate of another 4% rise last year. (Jeff Dinna, AP 4-29) Gas-fired generators [used] almost 1 trillion more cubic feet of natural gas last year than in 1999. But at the same time, factories cut back, using almost 1.5 trillion less, federal data show. (Jeff Dinna, AP 4-29) On 5-01 S&P upgraded Enbridge Energy Partners to 4 STARS (buy) from 3 STARS (hold). Analyst Charles LaPorta wrote: EEP reported Q1 "EPS of 67 cents vs. 37 cents, well above our estimate of 50 cents on volumes from the Lakehead pipeline system. We believe the promise of accelerating volume growth on this system is finally beginning to be realized, as a number of major projects in the Alberta oil sands are ramping up and accelerating deliveries over the foreseeable future. We are raising our 2006 EPS estimate to $2.25 from $2.10 to reflect EEP's improved prospects. Our 12-month target price is $51." On 5-01 AG Edwards Upgraded MMP from Hold to Buy. On 5-02 RBC Capital Markets Reiterated its Outperform for EPD. On 5-11 Morgan Stanley Initiated coverage of PAA at Equal-weight. On 5-11 Morgan Stanley Initiated coverage of WPZ at Overweight. On 5-16 RBC Capital Mkts Downgraded XTEX from Sector Perform to Underperform. On 5-17 Goldman Sachs Downgraded TCLP from In-Line to Underperform. On 5-17 Goldman Sachs Upgraded PAA from Underperform to In-Line. On 5-24 Morgan Stanley Initiated coverage of BWP at Overweight. On 5-05 S&P analyst C. LaPorta wrote that they are "raising our '06 EPS estimate to $2.50 from $2.40. Our 12-month target price remains $47, reflecting a target yield of 6.1%, which is a premium to peers". On 5-04 Citi analyst John Tysseland raised its '06 EPS estimate to $2.86 from $2.52. Citi reaffirmed its $53 target price for PAA, saying that target was 'based on the expectation that the partnership will raise the distribution to $3.05 per unit over the next 12-months and will trade with at yield of 5.75%'. Tysseland raised Citi's '06 DCF estimate for PAA to $3.75 from $3.40 and PAA's '07 DCF estimate to $3.86 from $3.57. On 5-08 Wachovia Upgraded XTXI from Market Perform to Outperform. Yves Siegel, an analyst with Wachovia Securities, said last week's announcement of a $480 million acquisition of natural-gas pipeline systems by Crosstex Energy LP should increase annual growth. Siegel said the acquisition could mean dividend growth of 35% annually for Crosstex Energy Inc., up from a prior prediction of 25%. Siegel also lowered earnings per share estimates for this year, to 70 cents from $1.20, because of acquisition-related costs. Analysts overall are looking for earnings per share this year of 91 cents, according to Thomson Financial. Energy Transfer Partners LP saw its shares trek higher Tuesday after John K. Tysseland of Citigroup highlighted the company's strong market position and boosted the stock's target price. Tysseland wrote that ETP's assets are "ideally positioned" to capitalize on the trend of increasing drilling and development of Texas gas reserves. He raised his price target for Energy Transfer Partners to $50 from $46. The analyst upped that ETE's price target by $1 to $37. "Energy Transfers assets provide takeaway capacity for production out of the hottest onshore natural gas drilling locations in Texas -- particularly the Barnett Shale, Bossier Sands, and Permian Basin," Tysseland wrote. On 4-05, Wachovia Initiated coverage of XTEX at Outperform. On 4-20 Citigroup Downgraded KMP from Buy to Hold. On 4-24 Citigroup Upgraded SXL from Hold to Buy. On 4-25 Deutsche Securities Upgraded VLI from Hold to Buy. On 5-26 Kayne Anderson Energy Total Return Fund [KYE] announced its net asset value at May 25th was $24.78 based on 31.7 million shares outstanding. The Fund's common stock closed on the NYSE on May 25, 2006 at $22.11. Based on this price, the Fund's discount to NAV was approximately 10.8%. Accordingly, the Fund will authorize its agents to make open market purchases of the Fund's shares. On 5-12 Kayne Anderson Energy Total Return Fund (KYE) announced its net assets were $826 million and its net asset value per share was $25.93 based on 31.9 million shares outstanding. KYE's common stock closed on May 11 at $23.55. Based on this price, KYE's discount to NAV was approximately 9.2%. Accordingly, the Fund will authorize its agents to make open market purchases of the Fund's shares. On 5-18 Kayne Anderson Energy Total Return Fund [KYE] announced its net asset value was $24.50. The Fund's net assets were $779 million. On 5-12 Tortoise North American Energy [TYN] declared it's Q2 dividend of $0.33 per share. The dividend will be distributed on June 1, 2006, to stockholders of record on May 23, 2006. The company also announced that it has accumulated a foreign source income tax credit for the income tax withheld during this quarter in Canada, of approximately $.04 per share. When the cash dividend is added to the availability of a tax credit, the pre-tax equivalent yield is 5.9% on our October 2005 IPO price of $25.00, and 6.8% on the May 11 market closing price of $21.85. TYN North American Energy invests in a portfolio consisting primarily of publicly traded Canadian royalty trusts and income trusts (collectively RITs) and publicly traded United States master limited partnerships (MLPs) with an emphasis on the midstream and downstream North American energy sector. On 5-12 Tortoise Energy Capital [TYY] declared itsQ2 dividend of $0.375 per share, compared to $0.36 in the previous quarter. The dividend will be distributed on June 1, 2006, to stockholders of record on May 23, 2006. TYY has invested all of its proceeds from its offering of Money Market Preferred Shares, and the second quarter dividend reflects full investment of the company's assets, including leverage. This dividend is estimated to consist of 100 percent return of capital for book purposes. On 5-12 Tortoise Energy Infrastructure [TYG] declared it's Q2 dividend of $0.50 per share, compared to $0.48 in the previous quarter and $0.445 in Q2-05. This represents a 12.4% increase over the same quarter of the prior year, and a 4.2% increase over the distribution for the prior quarter. The dividend will be distributed on June 1, 2006, to stockholders of record on May 23, 2006. This dividend is expected to consist of 100% return of capital for book purposes. For tax purposes, the character of the dividend will be determined at year-end and will be reported to stockholders at the beginning of 2007 on their Form 1099. On 5-09 Tortise Energy Infrastructure [TYG] announced that it has filed a shelf registration statement with the SEC. When effective, the shelf registration will allow Tortoise Energy Infrastructure Corp. to issue, in one or more offerings, up to $125 million in common stock, preferred stock or debt securities. On 5-01 KYE announced that it's net assets were $814 million and its net asset value per share was $25.46 and KYN announced that it's net assets were $973 million and its net asset value per share was $25.85. NOTE #1: This page is ment to be a supplement for those already getting monthly sector updates from their broker. It hopes to provide more timely data - and cover a wider array of stocks and different valuation metrics. Data entry errors sporadically happen. These supplemental stats omit metrics like Debt/Market Cap and the GP/LP split ratios - but YOU should not. NOTE #2: The operator of this site owns units in BWP, EPD, ETP, MWE and PAA, and units in GP ETE - and this could distort the coverage of those MLPs. Candidates for future acquisition include CPNO and MMP - so news on those will disproportionately draw my attention. Those MLPs with slower distribution growth may have coverage that is slighted. NOTE #3: For MLPs to be in my coverage universe, I must be able to find DCF and EPS estimates for them, they must have been in existence since the first of the coverage year. This is why GEL is not in the universe, and why BWP, HLND, TGP, TLP, USS and WPZ were added in 2006. NOTE #4: Those wishing to contribute DCF data to this site can do so by contacting Bob Martin at factoids@flash.net -- The only way we are going to get consensus DCF stats is if we build them ourselves, and that takes a team effort. This site frequently uses data provided by the members of the 'MLP and Royalty Trust' Yahoo group. |