Master limited partnerships don’t exactly reside in the investment spotlight, but investors who dismiss MLPs off the bat could be missing a good profit-making opportunity.
In general, MLPs offer three primary benefits to investors: tax-advantaged income, strong distribution yields that exceed stock market averages and significant cash-flow distributions.
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A master limited partnership is a business organized as a publicly listed limited partnership that can be traded on a national securities exchange. An MLP has the of a publicly traded company but is considered a limited partnership for tax purposes, which gives investors tax benefits but also more complicated tax filing requirements.
MLPs are required to generate 90% of their revenue from endeavors related to natural resources, commodities or real estate to maintain their tax-advantaged structure as a pass-through entity. That infrastructure focus is part of what makes the sector appealing today, says Brian Kessens, a chartered financial analyst at Tortoise Capital. MLPs “own critical energy infrastructure assets that generate largely fee-based cash flows and are less dependent on short-term commodity prices,” he says.
Kessens adds that today MLPs are also benefiting from stronger balance sheets, disciplined capital allocation and growing demand for reliable energy infrastructure driven by , power generation needs and broader energy security priorities.
Another reason investors are warming up to the sector is that the risk-reward picture looks better than it used to, especially in midstream energy, according to Andrew Meleney, portfolio manager and director of research industry at Infrastructure Capital Advisors. The sector has become less sensitive to broader market swings, while valuations remain relatively low. He says that combination supports an “advantaged risk-adjusted return” for the sector.
The long-term growth story for MLPs is also getting stronger thanks to the rising natural gas demand tied to AI data centers, Meleney says. This increased demand “will generate more natural gas throughput and create opportunities to build new pipelines to serve new power locations.”
Still, investors shouldn’t chase yield blindly. MLPs can be more volatile than stocks and bonds, historically, and they can be sensitive to rising interest rates. A high yield can also be a warning sign of unstable income if it isn’t supported by durable cash flow.
Kessens says a sustainable high-yield MLP is typically backed by stable cash flows, a strong balance sheet and disciplined capital allocation, while a yield trap may reflect concerns about the durability of the distribution. As a rule of thumb, he says, investors can look for distribution coverage above 1.3 times and leverage below 4 times debt-to-earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or EBITDA, assuming cash flows are steady and largely fee-based.
Meleney adds investors should prioritize MLPs that can fund capital expenditures primarily through their own free cash flow, since reliance on external financing helped drive the sector’s steep 2014 and 2015 downturn.
With that in mind, here are seven high-yield MLPs that offer attractive income potential and exposure to :
— Energy Transfer LP (ticker: )
— Plains All American Pipeline LP ()
— MPLX LP ()
— Delek Logistics Partners LP ()
— Western Midstream Partners LP ()
— USA Compression Partners LP ()
— Dorchester Minerals LP ()
Energy Transfer LP ()
If you want to lean into the artificial intelligence data center power theme, Meleney says Energy Transfer is a strong option. The company recently signed multiple agreements to supply
or transportation services to data centers and related power projects. This includes a long-term agreement with CloudBurst that could support up to 1.2 gigawatts of behind-the-meter power generation for at least a decade. The company also had a strong first quarter of 2026. Adjusted EBITDA rose 20% year over year to $4.9 billion, and distributable cash flow climbed to $2.7 billion. Energy Transfer also increased its quarterly distribution by more than 3% from the prior-year period. With 2026 growth capital aimed heavily at natural gas infrastructure, including projects tied to data center demand, ET offers steady income plus exposure to long-term demand for reliable energy infrastructure.
Dividend yield: 7.1%
Plains All American Pipeline LP ()
Plains owns and operates pipelines, gathering systems, storage and terminal assets across major crude oil and NGL corridors in North America. It handles an average of 9 million barrels of crude oil and NGL per day. The company delivered strong enough first quarter 2026 results to warrant raising its full year guidance. Adjusted EBITDA attributable to PAA was $730 million for the quarter, and management raised the midpoint of its full-year adjusted EBITDA guidance by $130 million to $2.9 billion. Its distribution also increased 10% year over year to 41.75 cents per unit. Leverage is one item to watch here, though, with pro forma leverage at 4.1 times at quarter-end. But management expects that figure to move back toward its target range of 3.25 to 3.75 times.
Yield: 7.5%
MPLX LP ()
MPLX is a consistent yield payer with a track record of growth. Over the past decade, the company has . That’s good news for MPLX investors, who currently earn a 7.6% yield. The Ohio-based company operates in the midstream energy logistics sector, with a concentration on the transport and storage of oil and natural gas. In the first quarter of 2026, MPLX generated $1.4 billion in distributable cash flow. This allowed it to issue a quarterly distribution of $1.07 per common unit, giving it distribution coverage of 1.3 times. Its leverage ratio was also 3.7 times at quarter-end, nicely below Kessens’ 4-times threshold. MPLX is also investing in growth projects in the Permian and Marcellus basins. Management expects these projects to generate enough cash flow to support a 12.5% annual distribution growth for two more years.
Yield: 7.6%
Delek Logistics Partners LP ()
Delek Logistics offers one of the higher yields on this list at about 8.9%, but it’s best to view it as a higher-income, higher-watchlist MLP rather than a sleepy pipeline play. The Texas-based partnership’s portfolio includes crude oil, refined products, natural gas and . Delek Logistics recently increased its quarterly distribution to $1.13 per unit in the first quarter of 2026, marking its 53rd consecutive quarterly increase. It also reported adjusted EBITDA of $132.3 million for the quarter, and management reaffirmed 2026 EBITDA guidance of $520 million to $560 million. Still, leverage of 4.05 times and distribution coverage of 1.18 times leave less room for error than some peers, which is why this is one to watch closely before investing.
Yield: 8.9%
Western Midstream Partners LP ()
Western Midstream Partners boasts an 8.5% current yield and offers direct exposure to the in the Delaware Basin and other key operating areas. The MLP gathers, treats and processes natural gas and oil, while also providing water reuse, gathering, transportation and disposal services for industries and communities. WES posted record first-quarter 2026 adjusted EBITDA of $683.1 million, up 15% from the prior-year period, and generated distributable cash flow of $508.9 million. The company also raised its quarterly distribution to 93 cents per unit, or $3.72 annualized, a 2.2% increase from the prior quarter. Western Midstream is still investing heavily, including through its planned Brazos Delaware II acquisition, but the transaction did not affect its relatively low overall leverage of around 3 times.
Yield: 8.5%
USA Compression Partners LP ()
USA Compression Partners is not a traditional pipeline MLP, but it fits the energy infrastructure theme in a different way. The Dallas-based MLP provides natural gas and crude oil compression services primarily for high-volume gathering systems, processing facilities and transportation. The company just paid a quarterly distribution of 52.5 cents per unit, or $2.10 annualized, with a forward yield of about 8.1%. It had a good first quarter in 2026, too, with revenue rising to $331.3 million from $245.2 million a year earlier and distributable cash flow climbing to $130.8 million, a $42.1 million increase from the same period last year. Its distribution coverage also improved to 1.72 times, comfortably above the 1.3-times rule of thumb for healthy MLP coverage. And its leverage ratio of 3.7 times shows it generates enough cash to cover its obligations and maintain shareholder distributions.
Yield: 8.1%
Dorchester Minerals LP ()
Dorchester Minerals is a Dallas-based natural gas and crude oil royalty properties investment company that launched its operations in 2003 when Dorchester Hugoton Ltd., Republic Royalty Company and Spinnaker Royalty Company LP combined. It now operates in 28 states. The MLP had a strong first quarter, with net income increasing by nearly $11.5 million from the same quarter last year to $29.1 million. Dorchester Minerals has essentially no balance sheet debt, making leverage less of a concern than commodity-price exposure and variable cash receipts.
Yield: 10.2%
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Update 06/22/26: This story was previously published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
