MASTER LIMITED PARTNERSHIPS

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Gathering a bit of mommentum here as the list of 1 point gainers grows longer. Buckeye (BPL) is up 1.24. Holly Partners (HEP) is up 1.70. Williams (WPZ) is up 1.02. Glory! Targa Resources (NGLS) is up nearly 1 point. And the list of fractional gainers contines to increase as well.

Back over 268 on the mlp index and we are up close to 1.50.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...: TWO WORDS: DOJI HAMMER

HAMMERTIME; 8/21/2008 2:10 PM
Anonymous said...: I listened to the Kayne Anderson call. They are bulled up. They didn't really say anything that those of us here on the MLP blog didn't already know.; 8/21/2008 2:49 PM
Anonymous said...: by David J. Reynolds The Wall Street Journal

Oil and gas insiders are betting big that the historic run-up in energy stocks isn't over.
Since energy stocks crested and retreated in early July, an unusually large number of directors, officers and large stakeholders have pumped money back into their own companies -- a sign, analysts say, that the boom is primed to resume.

New York Mercantile Exchange crude oil has sunk more than 20% since peaking above $147 a barrel in early July. A sector fund that tracks energy stocks in the S&P 500, State Street's Energy Select Sector SPDR, is off 17% after enjoying a three-year run that doubled its price.

Kelcy Warren, the chairman and chief executive of natural-gas pipeline operator Energy Transfer Partners LP, said he thinks the recent dip in energy stocks is overdone.

"I've been amazed that the whole sector has been turned upside down," he said. "Investors have thrown the baby out with the bath water."

In July, Mr. Warren bought $42.2 million in shares of Energy Transfer Equity LP, which owns the general partner of Energy Transfer Partners.

Mr. Warren isn't alone. Insiders at more energy companies are buying more stock since energy prices fell, according to data compiled by Form4Oracle, a Somerville, Mass., financial-research firm specializing in insider-trading data. Executives, directors and large stakeholders bought $10 million more stock than they sold over the last month, the data show.

"This is the most buying we've seen in a long time," says Form4Oracle analyst Alex Romayev. "As part of their compensation, directors and officers get stock and stock options. It's only normal for them to diversify and sell their holdings. When insiders are buying more than they're selling, it's a very bullish sign."

Typically, Mr. Romayev said, insider sales greatly outnumber buys, so the trend is especially conspicuous. "It was a great example of insiders reacting to the valuations of energy stocks," says Mr. Romayev, who owns shares of Chesapeake Energy Corp., an Oklahoma City-based natural-gas producer.

Analyst Ben Silverman says the insider purchases are a sign energy prices could soon rebound. "What they're trying to do is call a bottom," says Mr. Silverman, research director at InsiderScore, which tracks and rates insider buying and selling. "Over the years, energy insiders have accurately made short-term calls."

At least four times in recent years insiders have timed a short-term bottom in energy stocks, Mr. Silverman says. "When prices come down, insiders buy aggressively."

Mr. Silverman says he has a long position in Southwestern Energy Co. , a holding company with units engaged in oil and gas exploration and production.

Insiders at a number of energy-related companies have bought shares. At oilfield services provider Hercules Offshore Inc., four insiders, including Chief Executive John Rynd, bought $1.75 million in stock this month. Company stock is off nearly 50% since July highs. None of the insiders could be reached for comment.

Robert Day, a director of deepwater driller McMoRan Exploration Co., spent $9.4 million three weeks ago to buy shares. Mr. Day couldn't be reached for comment.

Mr. Warren said that energy prices are bound to rise because the government has made poor choices in energy policy.

In the meantime, he says, oil and natural gas will remain in high demand and many energy stocks are, at current levels, a good buy.

"I don't see what everyone's missing in the energy sector," Mr. Warren says. "There are some great bargains out there."; 8/21/2008 3:03 PM