KMI vs WES Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
KMI (Kinder Morgan) is a large-cap diversified natural gas pipeline C-Corp with a broad national network, while WES (Western Midstream Partners) is a gathering-focused MLP primarily serving Occidental Petroleum. KMI offers simplicity and diversification; WES offers higher yield with Oxy customer concentration risk.
KMI vs WES is large-cap diversified natural gas pipeline C-Corp versus smaller gathering-focused MLP — Kinder Morgan's national scale and C-Corp simplicity against Western Midstream's higher yield with Oxy customer concentration.
WES holds the edge across 3 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. WES leads on both 1-year return (+25.79%) and forward P/E quality (11.49x vs 20.52x for KMI), a relatively favorable combination of momentum and valuation. WES leads on both revenue growth (30.00%) and operating margin (41.67%), suggesting a stronger fundamental setup on both dimensions. Analyst consensus implies similar upside for both: +13.46% for KMI and +12.00% for WES.
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 large-cap diversified natural gas pipeline infrastructure with C-Corp simplicity (no K-1, retirement account compatible)
- Value the tailwind from growing natural gas demand for LNG exports and AI data center power generation feeding Kinder Morgan's pipeline network
- Prefer a dividend growth story over maximum current yield — KMI targets consistent annual distribution growth
- Want higher current distribution yield from a gathering-focused MLP with fee-based cash flows tied to Occidental Petroleum's production
- Value fee-based gathering and processing contracts providing cash flow stability regardless of commodity price movements
- Accept Oxy customer concentration and MLP K-1 tax complexity in exchange for higher current income than available from larger midstream C-Corps
| Metric | KMI | WES |
|---|---|---|
| AI scorei | 43.5 | 40.5 |
| AI ranki | #335 | #1277 |
| Latest closei | $32.71 | $44.23 |
| 1M returni | +5.28% | -1.18% |
| 3M returni | +4.17% | -5.37% |
| 6M returni | +0.74% | +5.97% |
| 1Y returni | +24.89% | +25.79% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | KMI | WES |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $12.54K (+25.4%) started 2025-11-03 | $13.44K (+34.4%) started 2025-11-03 |
| 5Y ago | $29.86K (+198.6%) started 2021-11-03 | $50.25K (+402.5%) started 2021-11-03 |
| 10Y ago | $45.79K (+357.9%) started 2016-11-03 | $77.71K (+677.1%) started 2016-11-03 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | KMI | WES |
|---|---|---|
| Market capi | $70.28B | $18.27B |
| Trailing P/Ei | 20.36 | 14.00 |
| Forward P/Ei | 20.52 | 11.49 |
| Price/Salesi | N/A | 4.22 |
| EV/Revenuei | 5.78 | 6.54 |
| Analyst targeti | $35.81 | $49.54 |
| Target upsidei | +13.46% | +12.00% |
| Metric | KMI | WES |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growthi | 10.80% | 30.00% |
| Earnings growthi | 21.20% | 13.80% |
| EPS growthi | +21.20% | +13.80% |
| FCF margini | +5.99% | +20.01% |
| Operating margini | 30.06% | 41.67% |
| Profit margini | 19.30% | 29.00% |
| ROIC proxyi | 10.99% | 34.11% |
| Return on equityi | 10.99% | 34.11% |
| Dividend yieldi | 3.74% | 8.02% |
| Payout ratioi | 72.84% | 115.82% |
| Dividend growth streaki | No increase yet | 4 yrs |
| Betai | 0.55 | 0.71 |
| Debt/equityi | 98.62 | 207.38 |
| Current ratioi | 0.46 | 0.91 |
| Quick ratioi | 0.29 | 0.87 |
Over the past year, KMI and WES have moved moderately in the same direction (correlation of 0.47), 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 | KMI | WES |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | +25.42% | +25.86% |
| CAGRi | +25.51% | +25.96% | |
| Volatilityi | 21.58% | 20.73% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.96 | 1.01 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.42 | 1.43 | |
| Max drawdowni | 12.12% | 11.37% | |
| Current drawdowni | 5.00% | 11.18% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 4.25% | 4.16% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 5.37% | 5.29% | |
| Max daily dropi | 3.87% | 5.49% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 8.70% | 6.65% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | +138.26% | +205.39% |
| CAGRi | +18.97% | +25.04% | |
| Volatilityi | 22.41% | 27.64% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.69 | 0.79 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.97 | 1.17 | |
| Max drawdowni | 20.31% | 23.54% | |
| Current drawdowni | 5.00% | 11.18% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 6.58% | 4.99% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 8.03% | 6.31% | |
| Max daily dropi | 9.28% | 7.96% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 15.66% | 16.85% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +158.56% | +131.34% |
| CAGRi | +9.97% | +8.75% | |
| Volatilityi | 27.42% | 46.49% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.32 | 0.33 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.45 | 0.48 | |
| Max drawdowni | 55.13% | 92.01% | |
| Current drawdowni | 5.00% | 11.18% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 12.23% | 21.49% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 15.86% | 30.57% | |
| Max daily dropi | 21.04% | 54.79% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 35.61% | 63.53% |
| Category | KMI | WES |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Kinder Morgan, Inc. | Western Midstream Partners, LP |
| Sector | Energy | Energy - Midstream Gathering & Processing |
| Industry | Oil & Gas Midstream | Oil & Gas Midstream |
| Core business | Kinder Morgan is one of North America's largest energy infrastructure companies, operating approximately 83,000 miles of natural gas pipelines and 139 terminals for the storage and handling of petroleum products, chemicals, and bulk materials — structured as a C-Corp rather than an MLP. | Western Midstream Partners is a master limited partnership (MLP) operating natural gas gathering, compression, treatment, processing, and water pipeline systems — primarily serving Occidental Petroleum's upstream operations in the DJ Basin, Delaware Basin, and other areas. |
| Investor focus | Investors track Kinder Morgan's distributable cash flow (DCF), dividend coverage ratio, leverage metrics, natural gas pipeline throughput, and the growing opportunity from LNG export pipeline demand and AI data center natural gas power demand. | Investors track Western Midstream's distribution per unit, distribution coverage, Occidental relationship (as primary customer), gathering system throughput volumes, and leverage ratios. |
- One of the largest natural gas pipeline networks in North America provides irreplaceable infrastructure with multi-decade operational history and regulatory protection
- C-Corp structure (versus MLP) simplifies tax treatment for investors — no K-1 form, eligible for retirement accounts without UBTI concerns
- Natural gas pipeline demand growth from LNG exports and AI data center electricity demand creates meaningful volume growth tailwind
- Strong relationship with Occidental Petroleum as the primary customer provides revenue visibility through long-term gathering contracts tied to Oxy's production development plans
- High distribution yield from MLP structure appeals to income investors seeking above-average midstream distributions
- Fee-based revenue model (charging per unit of gas gathered, processed, or transported) provides more stable cash flows than commodity price-exposed businesses
- Kinder Morgan went through a significant dividend cut in 2015-2016 to shore up its balance sheet — investors remember this overhang even though the company has since rebuilt its distribution
- Natural gas pipeline rates are regulated by FERC — rate cases and regulatory decisions can affect revenue on regulated pipeline segments
- Long-term shift to renewable energy could reduce natural gas demand, though the timeline for this to affect pipeline volumes remains highly uncertain
- Heavy customer concentration with Occidental Petroleum means WES is significantly exposed to OXY's production decisions and financial health
- MLP K-1 tax form can create complications for retirement accounts (UBTI exposure) and requires more complex tax filings than regular stock dividends
- MLP sector generally trades at a discount to comparable C-Corp energy infrastructure companies due to tax complexity and investor base narrowness
Compare more than two at a time
This page is a fixed writeup on KMI and WES. Our comparison engine is the interactive version: load up to five tickers, switch timeframes, and get the correlation, drawdown, and overlap analysis that a static page can't show.
Add three more names beside KMI and WES, mixing stocks and ETFs in the same table — useful when the real question is which of a whole peer group to own.
AI score, forward P/E, analyst target upside, operating margin, and revenue growth are scored head-to-head, with a running tally of which ticker leads on how many metrics.
Volatility, Sharpe and Sortino ratios, maximum, current, and average drawdown, Ulcer Index, and worst single-day and single-week drops across every timeframe.
Pairwise daily-return correlation for every combination, so you can see whether two holdings actually diversify each other or just move together.
A scatter plot of forward P/E against return on equity, plus drawdown and 30-day rolling volatility charts, to separate what is cheap from what is merely beaten down.
For ETFs, a top-holdings comparison that exposes hidden overlap between funds. Every comparison exports to CSV for your own spreadsheet work.
Two comparisons a week are free without an account. A 14-day trial removes the limit and adds AI price forecasts, stock rankings, saved watchlists, and the intrinsic value calculator — no credit card required.
Want deeper AI forecasts?
This comparison page is public and free forever. Subscribers can unlock saved watchlists, full AI rankings, detailed forecasts, and interactive analysis tools.
Full valuation workup with AI Score, Monte Carlo forecast, and bull/bear case — free preview, premium data from $3.99.