Howard argues that many new investors falsely believe that since MLPs are exposed to the energy space, the sector should be sold off when oil prices fall. With MLP-related mutual funds growing to $32 billion in assets from $3 billion over the past four years, Howard points out “that’s a lot of inexperienced investors.”
MLPs don’t make their money based on oil or gas prices. Unlike other energy sector stocks, MLPs primarily deal with the distribution and storage of energy products, so their business model is less reliant on the commodities market since MLPs profit off the quantity of oil and natural gas they are able to move around. Consequently, MLPs act more like energy toll roads. MLPs also operate under very long-term contracts, so any temporary short-term changes in oil or gas typically have little to no effect on revenue streams.
JPMorgan Alerian MLP Index ETN
For more information on master limited partnerships, visit our MLPs category.
Max Chen contributed to this article.