Midstream companies build pipelines and infrastructure to transport crude oil, natural gas, and other resources across thousands of miles. They generate most of their revenue by charging upstream extraction companies and downstream refineries "tolls" to use their pipelines.
That business model is well insulated from volatile commodity prices, as it only needs those resources to keep flowing to generate stable profits. It also generates plenty of cash, so most of the top midstream companies pay high distributions or dividends. Let's take a look at two of those leaders -- Energy Transfer (ET +0.12%) and Enbridge (ENB +1.92%) -- and see why they're still worth buying as stable, high-yield plays in this turbulent market.
Image source: Getty Images.
Energy Transfer
Energy Transfer operates more than 140,000 miles of pipeline across 44 states. It mainly transports natural gas, liquefied natural gas (LNG), natural gas liquids (NGLs), crude oil, and other refined products. It also helps companies export their natural gas products overseas.
Energy Transfer's crude oil and NGL volumes surged to record levels in the first half of 2026. That acceleration was driven by increased domestic oil production and long-term natural gas supply agreements with utilities and data centers to fuel the AI boom.
Energy Transfer operates as a Master Limited Partnership (MLP), which treats you as a business partner instead of a regular shareholder. So while you need to file its distributions separately on a K-1 form with your taxes every year, it blends a return of capital with its own income to pay more tax-efficient distributions than conventional dividends.
NYSE: ET
Key Data Points
MLPs cover their distributions with their distributable cash flow (DCF). From 2020 to 2025, Energy Transfer's adjusted annualized DCF rose from $5.74 billion to $8.21 billion, while its annual distributions grew from $2.47 billion to $4.56 billion.
That comfortable coverage ratio, which Energy Transfer aims to keep above 1.8x, should help the company meet its long-term goal of raising its distribution at an annual rate of 3%-5%. It pays a forward yield of 6.4%, and it's raised that payout for 19 consecutive quarters. With an enterprise value of $142 billion, Energy Transfer still looks reasonably valued at 17 times last year's adjusted DCF -- so it's one of the safest pipeline stocks to buy, hold, and forget.
Enbridge
If you don't want to deal with Energy Transfer's extra tax forms, Enbridge -- which is based in Canada and operates as a regular C-corporation -- might be the simpler choice. Enbridge operates over 70,000 miles of pipelines and smaller feeder lines in North America. It mainly transports crude oil and natural gas across the U.S. and Canada.
Unlike Energy Transfer, which transports sweet light crude oil and NGLs from the Permian, Eagle Ford, and Mid-Continent basins in the U.S., Enbridge primarily exports Canadian heavy crude oil to refineries across the Midwest U.S. and Gulf Coast. But just like Energy Transfer, Enbridge experienced record-setting throughput volumes this year. Enbridge also recently acquired and integrated three major U.S. gas utilities from Dominion Energy (D -0.92%), becoming North America's largest natural gas utility platform.
NYSE: ENB
Key Data Points
From 2020 to 2025, Enbridge's DCF per share grew from $4.67 CAD to $5.71 CAD. That cash easily covered its dividends, which rose from $3.24 CAD to $3.77 CAD during the same period. It's raised its payout annually for 31 consecutive years and pays a forward yield of 5.6%.
At $52 per share, Enbridge trades at 24 times this year's earnings. Its higher valuation and lower yield might make it slightly less appealing than Energy Transfer, but it's still a great play on rising oil prices and the AI market's soaring demand for natural gas.
