Unpacking Linn Energy and Vanguard Natural Resources' Earnings Reports

Linn Energy LLC and Vanguard Natural Resources LLC are master limited partnerships; do their earnings reports tell the whole story?

By Tyler Crowe – May 6, 2014 at 9:00AM EST

The master limited partnerships Linn Energy (LINE +0.00%) and Vanguard Natural Resources (NASDAQ: VNR) both reported distribution coverage ratios of less than 1.0 in their recent earnings reports, which could be concerning. Linn's was at .993 and Vanguard's was .83; both need to be at 1.0 or higher for distribution to be sustainable.

But as Fool contributor Tyler Crowe and energy and materials analyst Joel South discuss in this video, earnings reports don't tell the whole story with MLPs. Here, cash is king, as well as distribution coverage, and Joel and Tyler break down whether Linn and Vanguard investors have anything to worry about regarding either of those things going forward.

Video segment starts at 9:44

Tyler Crowe is a contributing Stock Market Analyst for The Motley Fool. He has worn several hats over the past 14 years with the Fool from analyzing stocks, writing about them, talking about them, coaching others about stock writing, and...you get the idea. Tyler's true passion is turing over stones to find the oddball investments with incredible wealth building potential. If he isn't nose-deep in a proxy statement, Tyler is probably skiing somewhere. Tyler holds an M.B.A. from Collège des Ingénieurs (Paris), a, M.S. in Environmental Engineering, a B.S. in Civil Engineering, and a B.S. in Foreign Affairs from the University of New Hampshire.

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Unpacking Linn Energy and Vanguard Natural Resources' Earnings Reports

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