Kinder Morgan Inc (NYSE:KMI) stock rose 3.89% (As on January 22, 11:46:19 AM UTC-4, Source: Google Finance) after the company reported better-than-expected fourth quarter results, driven by record performance in its natural gas pipelines business. Natural gas transport volumes increased 9% compared to the fourth quarter of 2024, primarily due to LNG deliveries on Tennessee Gas Pipeline. Natural gas gathering volumes surged 19% across all assets, with the KinderHawk system making the largest contribution. The company generated cash flow from operations of $1.7 billion and free cash flow after capital expenditures of $0.9 billion in the fourth quarter, up 12% and 18% respectively from the prior year period. The company ended the quarter with a net debt-to-adjusted EBITDA ratio of 3.8 times, maintaining its healthy balance sheet position. The company remains bullish on long-term U.S. natural ​gas demand, citing rising electricity consumption from data centers, and beat ‌Wall Street expectations for fourth-quarter profit. The company was helped by higher volumes of natural gas transported through its pipelines in the quarter.

KMI in the fourth quarter of FY25 has reported the adjusted earnings per share of 39 cents, beating the analysts’ estimates for the adjusted earnings per share of 36 cents. The company had reported the adjusted revenue of $4.51 billion in the fourth quarter of FY25, beating the analysts’ estimates for revenue of $4.32 billion. The growth was also driven by new natural gas expansion projects, contributions from the acquisition of a natural gas gathering and ‍processing system from Outrigger Energy and strong demand from related services. Kinder Morgan said it transported about 48.4 trillion British thermal ⁠units of natural gas per day during the quarter, up from ‍44.5 trillion Btu per day a year earlier. The company, which transports roughly 40% of U.S. ‌natural ‌gas output, said its total project backlog rose to $10 billion from $9.3 billion in the previous quarter. U.S. natural gas futures rose over 11% sequentially in the fourth quarter, snapping a falling streak that started in the second ⁠quarter. However, its total delivery volumes, which also ​include refined products such as jet fuel and ‍diesel fuel, fell to 2,035 thousand barrels per day during the quarter, from 2,105 thousand ​bpd a year ago.

For 2026, Kinder Morgan expects adjusted earnings per share of $1.36, representing a 5% increase from 2025. The company also plans to raise its dividend by 2% to $1.19 per share for 2026. Kinder Morgan also expects ⁠to begin ​its Hiland Express pipeline conversion project by the end of the first quarter of this year.