Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMI | KMI Price Prediction) and Enbridge (NYSE:ENB) just delivered quarters that pull North American midstream income in opposite directions.
Kinder Morgan closed out fiscal 2025 with record fourth-quarter results and a fresh BBB+ upgrade from S&P. Enbridge followed with a steady Q1 2026 anchored by its diversified Canadian and US utility footprint. Both pay generous dividends. Only one wears the Aristocrat crown.
Record Gas Volumes Lift KMI. Utilities and Storage Carry Enbridge.
Kinder Morgan’s quarter was a natural gas story. CEO Kim Dang said the business “delivered its highest ever fourth quarter and full-year net income attributable to KMI and Adjusted EBITDA,” with gas transport volumes up 9% and gathering up 19%.
Q4 adjusted EPS came in at $0.39, beating the $0.37 estimate, on revenue of $4.51B. The $10B project backlog is roughly 90% natural gas, with about 60% tied to power generation including data centers. That is a sharp, focused bet.
Enbridge’s story is breadth across segments and geographies. Greg Ebel framed Q1 as proof of “the strength of our diversified, low-risk business model,” noting mainline volumes averaged 3.2 million barrels per day and the system has been apportioned all year.”
Adjusted EBITDA held roughly flat at C$5.81B, with Gas Distribution and Storage the brightest segment at C$1.71B. The recent US gas utility acquisitions in Ohio, Utah and North Carolina are expected to deliver an 8%+ rate base CAGR. Quieter, but durable.
One Yield Pays Now. One Yield Compounds Longer.
| Dividend Lens | KMI | ENB |
| Annualized payout | $1.19 (2026 guide) | C$3.88 |
| Yield | 3.51% | 6.58% |
| Latest raise | 2% | 3%, 31st straight year |
| Coverage credibility | FCF coverage 1.18x to 1.64x post-2016 | OCF coverage ~1.42x in 2025 |
Enbridge offers a yield nearly twice Kinder Morgan’s, plus a 31-year streak of annual dividend increases. Kinder Morgan still carries the scar of the 2015 cut from $0.51 to $0.125 quarterly, and the current $0.2975 payout sits well below that pre-cut peak.
KMI’s leverage is cleaner at 3.8x net debt/EBITDA versus Enbridge at 5.0x, the top of its target range. That trade is real. You take a heavier balance sheet at ENB to get the richer check.
The Next Test Is Power Demand and Leverage
I will be watching Kinder Morgan’s Trident Pipeline (in service Q1 2027) and SSE4 ramp to confirm that 17% US gas demand growth through 2030 actually flows into EBITDA.
For Enbridge, the catalysts are the Meta data center power partnership and whether management can pull leverage off the 5.0x ceiling while still funding the C$40B secured backlog. Analyst targets tell a split story: KMI sits near consensus at $35.33, while ENB trades above its $52.65 target after a 35.73% one-year run.
Why I Lean Toward Enbridge for Dividend Investors
For me, the better dividend stock here is Enbridge. The combination of a 6.58% yield, three decades of increases, and four diversified segments (Liquids, Gas Transmission, Distribution and Storage, Renewables) is exactly what an income investor wants to own through cycles.
Kinder Morgan has rebuilt credibility honestly, and at +138% over five years the stock has rewarded patience. But a 2% raise on a 3.5% yield leans more total-return than pure dividend.
If you want growth optionality on gas-fired power, KMI fits. If you want the check, the history, and the breadth, Enbridge is the cleaner answer. I would only change my mind if ENB’s leverage drifts further above 5.0x without a clear path back down.
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