Dividend Challengers 2025: Top 25

8. Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE:KMI)

Dividend Yield as of April 29: 4.30%

Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE:KMI) is an energy infrastructure company in North America that owns oil and gas pipelines and terminals. The company moves roughly 40% of the nation’s natural gas production through its extensive network of 66,000 miles of pipelines. Natural gas makes up about 65% of its overall business. It maintains a strong outlook on the long-term demand for natural gas. It pointed out that US natural gas consumption has climbed by 80% over the past two decades, increasing from 60 billion cubic feet per day in 2005 to 109 billion cubic feet per day in 2024. In the past 12 months, the stock has delivered an over 44% return to shareholders.

Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE:KMI) reported solid earnings in the first quarter of 2025. The company posted revenue of $4.24 billion, up 10% from the same period last year. The revenue also beat analysts’ estimates by $215 million. Its adjusted EBITDA came in at $2.1 billion, up 1% on a YoY basis. The company delivered strong operational results, with higher financial contributions from its Natural Gas Pipelines, CO₂, and Terminals segments compared to the first quarter of 2024. However, performance in the Products Pipelines segment declined, primarily due to a scheduled turnaround at the condensate processing facility—an event that occurs once every ten years.

Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE:KMI) continued to self-fund high-quality capital projects, generating $1.2 billion in operating cash flow and $400 million in free cash flow after capital expenditures. The company maintained a solid financial position, ending the quarter with a Net Debt-to-Adjusted EBITDA ratio of 4.1 times. In addition, it expanded its footprint in the Bakken region through the $640 million acquisition of Outrigger Energy II’s gathering and processing system, supported by long-term agreements with key customers in the area.

On April 16, Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE:KMI) announced a 1.7% increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.2925 per share. Through this increase, the company stretched its dividend growth streak to eight years, which makes it one of the best stocks on our dividend challengers list. The stock has a dividend yield of 4.3%, as of April 29.