Kinder Morgan's Q1 Earnings Beat on Natural Gas Pipeline Strength
Kinder Morgan Inc.KMI reported first-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of 48 cents, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 38 cents. The bottom line increased year over year from 34 cents.
Total quarterly revenues of $4.83 billion beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.65 billion. The top line also increased from $4.24 billion in the prior-year quarter.
The strong quarterly results can be primarily attributed to contributions from the Natural Gas Pipelines business segment.
Kinder Morgan, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Kinder Morgan, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Kinder Morgan, Inc. Quote
Segmental Analysis of KMI
Natural Gas Pipelines: In the March-ended quarter, adjusted earnings before depreciation, depletion and amortization expenses (EBDA) jumped to $1.80 billion from $1.53 billion a year ago. The segment achieved record financial results in the first quarter, primarily driven by higher contributions from the Texas Intrastate system due to cold weather as well as from the Tennessee Gas Pipeline. Natural gas transport volumes, natural gas sales volumes and gathering volumes were also higher compared with the first quarter of 2025.
Product Pipelines: The segment’s EBDA in the first quarter of 2026 was $325 million, an increase from $274 million recorded a year ago. The increase can be attributed to higher transport benefiting the transmix business, recovery of retroactive rate increases after a favorable court ruling and the recovery from a previous turnaround at the condensate processing facility.
Terminals: Kinder Morgan generated a quarterly EBDA of $330 million from the segment, higher than the $275 million reported in the year-ago period. Liquids utilization was 93.5% in the quarter, lower than 94.3% in the prior-year quarter. The segment was aided by the liquids terminals business, supported by increased rates and ancillary fees at the Houston Ship Channel hub, early termination payments from storage agreements and increased earnings from fully contracted bulk terminals and Jones Act tankers.
CO2: The segment’s EBDA was $189 million, up from the year-ago quarter’s $182 million.
KMI’s Operational Highlights
Expenses related to operations and maintenance remained flat year over year at $711 million. However, the total operating costs, expenses and other expenditures increased to $3.38 billion from $3.10 billion.
KMI’s project backlog was reported at $10.1 billion by the end of the first quarter. The midstream energy major added that natural gas projects comprise approximately 92% of its project backlog, with nearly 60% dedicated to supporting local distribution companies and power generation.
Balance Sheet of KMI
As of March 31, 2026, KMI reported $72 million in cash and cash equivalents. At the quarter's end, its long-term debt amounted to $29.72 billion.
KMI: Outlook
For this year, the midstream player projected net income attributable to KMI at $3.1 billion and estimated adjusted EPS at $1.36 per share. The company also expects the budgeted adjusted EBITDA for 2026 to be $8.6 billion. Kinder Morgan, currently carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), anticipates ending 2026 with its net debt-to-adjusted EBITDA at 3.8X
Other Stocks to Consider
Some other top-ranked stocks from the energy sector are Chevron Corporation CVX, Equinor ASA EQNR and Antero Midstream Corporation AM. CVX and EQNR each sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), while AM has a Zacks Rank #2 at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks Rank #1 stocks here.
Chevron is a leading integrated energy giant involved in all aspects of the oil and gas industry, including exploration, production, refining and marketing. In the United States, Chevron maintains a significant presence in the Permian Basin, with more than 1.75 million net acres in the Delaware and Midland sub-basins. Favorable oil prices in the March-ended quarter, with the U.S. Energy Information Administration (“EIA”) reporting Cushing, OK WTI spot prices of $60.04, $64.51 and $91.38 per barrel for January, February and March 2026, respectively, are likely to boost CVX’s overall performance. CVX is set to release first-quarter 2026 earnings on May 1, 2026.
Equinor is a Norway-based integrated energy giant boasting a resilient business, spanning oil and gas exploration and production, midstream marketing and processing for crude oil, gas and refined products. Similarly, with a favorable oil pricing environment in the March-ended quarter, EQNR is likely to bolster overall performance by the end of the quarter. EQNR is set to release first-quarter 2026 earnings on May 6, 2026.
Antero Midstreamis a Denver-based midstream company that owns and operates gathering pipelines, compression facilities, and integrated water handling systems, primarily serving Antero Resources in the Appalachian Basin. AM provides fee-based gathering and processing services under long-term contracts, focusing on developing infrastructure to support natural gas and liquids production, which is likely to generate stable revenues in the March quarter. AM is set to release first-quarter 2026 earnings on April 29, 2026.
Zacks' Research Chief Names "Stock Most Likely to Double"
Our team of experts has just released the 5 stocks with the greatest probability of gaining +100% or more in the coming months. Of those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian highlights the one stock set to climb highest.
This top pick is a little-known satellite-based communications firm. Space is projected to become a trillion dollar industry, and this company's customer base is growing fast. Analysts have forecasted a major revenue breakout in 2025. Of course, all our elite picks aren't winners but this one could far surpass earlier Zacks' Stocks Set to Double like Hims & Hers Health, which shot up +209%.
Free: See Our Top Stock And 4 Runners UpThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
