ET vs WES Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
Energy Transfer and Western Midstream are both US midstream master limited partnerships, but Energy Transfer operates a much larger, more diversified national pipeline network, while Western Midstream is a smaller, more concentrated gathering and processing specialist anchored in the Permian Basin.
ET offers scale and diversification across multiple commodity types and basins, while WES offers more concentrated, directly producer-linked exposure to Permian Basin gathering and processing activity. The tradeoff is between diversified scale and focused basin-specific exposure.
ET holds the edge across 3 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. ET has delivered stronger 1-year price return (+29.91% vs +28.36%), though WES has the better forward P/E setup (11.39x vs 11.56x for ET). On fundamentals, ET is growing revenue faster (78.40%), while WES maintains the higher operating margin (41.67%) — a classic growth-versus-profitability split. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for ET (+22.52%) than for WES (+12.92%).
Human Wall Street analysts' price targets, typically implying a ~12-month view — a separate signal from this site's own AI Prediction Signal further down the page, which is a 5-/30-day machine-learning forecast based on price history alone.
- Want exposure to diversified US midstream infrastructure spanning multiple commodity types and basins
- See growing natural gas and NGL export demand as a long-term growth driver
- Value the scale advantages of one of the largest US midstream operators
- Are comfortable with the tax considerations that come with owning a master limited partnership
- Want more concentrated exposure to Permian Basin gathering and processing activity
- Prefer a smaller, more focused midstream asset base over a highly diversified national network
- Believe fee-based gathering contracts provide a relatively predictable cash flow stream
- Are comfortable with the geographic concentration risk of a Permian-anchored midstream business
| Metric | ET | WES |
|---|---|---|
| AI scorei | 59.3 | 40.7 |
| AI ranki | #711 | #1277 |
| Latest closei | $20.34 | $44.23 |
| 1M returni | -0.64% | +0.84% |
| 3M returni | +1.97% | -3.43% |
| 6M returni | +4.77% | +8.14% |
| 1Y returni | +29.91% | +28.36% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | ET | WES |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $14K (+40.0%) started 2025-11-03 | $14.02K (+40.2%) started 2025-11-03 |
| 5Y ago | $50.41K (+404.1%) started 2021-11-03 | $52.88K (+428.8%) started 2021-11-03 |
| 10Y ago | $115.47K (+1054.7%) started 2016-11-03 | $82.96K (+729.6%) started 2016-11-03 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | ET | WES |
|---|---|---|
| Market capi | $69.42B | $18.13B |
| Trailing P/Ei | 13.81 | 13.88 |
| Forward P/Ei | 11.56 | 11.39 |
| Price/Salesi | 0.65 | 4.18 |
| EV/Revenuei | 1.47 | 6.34 |
| Analyst targeti | $24.70 | $49.54 |
| Target upsidei | +22.52% | +12.92% |
| Metric | ET | WES |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growthi | 78.40% | 30.00% |
| Earnings growthi | 85.30% | 13.80% |
| EPS growthi | +85.30% | +13.80% |
| FCF margini | +2.94% | +20.01% |
| Operating margini | 10.41% | 41.67% |
| Profit margini | 4.92% | 29.00% |
| ROIC proxyi | 14.56% | 34.11% |
| Return on equityi | 14.56% | 34.11% |
| Dividend yieldi | 6.74% | 8.41% |
| Payout ratioi | 91.44% | 115.82% |
| Dividend growth streaki | 4 yrs | 4 yrs |
| Betai | 0.60 | 0.71 |
| Debt/equityi | 138.33 | 207.38 |
| Current ratioi | 1.16 | 0.91 |
| Quick ratioi | 0.91 | 0.87 |
Over the past year, ET and WES have moved moderately in the same direction (correlation of 0.56), based on daily returns.
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | ET | WES |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | +29.91% | +28.43% |
| CAGRi | +30.02% | +28.54% | |
| Volatilityi | 17.55% | 20.37% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 1.33 | 1.12 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 2.10 | 1.62 | |
| Max drawdowni | 10.03% | 11.37% | |
| Current drawdowni | 6.40% | 9.37% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 2.59% | 4.15% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 3.54% | 5.27% | |
| Max daily dropi | 2.78% | 5.49% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 5.20% | 6.65% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | +211.90% | +211.64% |
| CAGRi | +25.56% | +25.54% | |
| Volatilityi | 23.65% | 27.59% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.90 | 0.80 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.30 | 1.20 | |
| Max drawdowni | 24.56% | 23.54% | |
| Current drawdowni | 6.40% | 9.37% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 5.29% | 4.99% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 7.68% | 6.30% | |
| Max daily dropi | 8.86% | 7.96% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 16.44% | 16.85% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +225.50% | +136.08% |
| CAGRi | +12.53% | +8.97% | |
| Volatilityi | 33.84% | 46.48% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.39 | 0.34 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.55 | 0.49 | |
| Max drawdowni | 72.82% | 92.01% | |
| Current drawdowni | 6.40% | 9.37% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 16.98% | 21.49% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 24.25% | 30.57% | |
| Max daily dropi | 27.82% | 54.79% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 44.00% | 63.53% |
| Category | ET | WES |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Energy Transfer LP | Western Midstream Partners, LP |
| Sector | Energy | Energy |
| Industry | Oil & Gas Midstream | Oil & Gas Midstream |
| Core business | A diversified midstream energy master limited partnership operating natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil, and refined product pipelines, storage, and terminal infrastructure across the United States. | A midstream master limited partnership focused on natural gas, crude oil, and produced water gathering and processing infrastructure, with a concentrated presence in the Permian Basin and other key US producing regions. |
| Investor focus | Distribution growth policy and coverage ratio, natural gas and NGL export infrastructure expansion, and balance sheet deleveraging progress. | Gathering and processing volume growth tied to producer drilling activity, distribution coverage and growth policy, and leverage reduction progress. |
- Extensive, diversified midstream asset base spans multiple commodity types and basins across the United States
- Significant natural gas and NGL export infrastructure positions the company to benefit from growing global demand for US energy exports
- Large scale provides operational and negotiating advantages relative to smaller, more geographically concentrated midstream peers
- Concentrated Permian Basin gathering and processing presence provides direct exposure to one of the most active US drilling regions
- Fee-based contract structure across much of its gathering and processing business supports relatively predictable cash flow
- Smaller, more focused asset base can allow for more targeted capital allocation decisions than a highly diversified midstream peer
- Master limited partnership structure carries distinct tax considerations for investors compared to owning shares of a standard corporation
- Historical distribution cuts during periods of market stress illustrate that payouts are not entirely immune to commodity price cycles
- Elevated leverage relative to some pipeline peers requires ongoing debt reduction discipline
- Gathering and processing volumes are directly tied to upstream producer drilling activity, creating sensitivity to commodity price cycles
- Geographic concentration in fewer basins provides less diversification than midstream companies with broader national footprints
- Master limited partnership structure carries distinct tax considerations for investors compared to owning shares of a standard corporation
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