Enbridge Energy (EEP) Q2 Earnings Beat, Revenues Decline

Oil and natural gas transporter Enbridge Energy Partners L.P. (NYSE:EEP) reported second-quarter 2016 adjusted earnings of 22 cents per unit, which came above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 13 cents. The bottom line also improved from the year-earlier profit of 18 cents.

Total revenue in the quarter fell to $1,048.9 million from the year-ago level of $1,313.1 million.

Segment Performance

Liquids: Adjusted operating income in the Liquids segment increased $60.2 million to $330.8 million over the comparable period in 2015. The upside was due to higher transportation rates attributable to new assets placed into service related to the Mainline Expansion project. This was partially offset by increased operating and depreciation expense over the same period in the prior year due to new assets placed into service.

Natural Gas: The Natural Gas unit reported adjusted loss of $3.7 million, deteriorating $6.4 million from the comparable period in 2015. The decrease was predominantly due to lower natural gas prices and NGL system production volumes. Lower system volumes were primarily attributable to the still low commodity price environment for hydrocarbons. The decrease was partially offset by lower operating and administrative expenses from enacted cost-reduction measures.

ENBRIDGE EGY PT Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

ENBRIDGE EGY PT Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | ENBRIDGE EGY PT Quote

Distribution

Enbridge declared a quarterly cash distribution of 58.3 cents per unit, or $2.332 per unit on an annualized basis, for the quarter ended Jun 30, 2016. The approved distribution remains unchanged from the previous quarter. The distribution is payable on Aug 12 to unitholders of record at the close of business on Aug 5.

Zacks Rank

Enbridge Energy currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked players from the energy sector are Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) , World Fuel Services Corp. (NYSE:INT) and North Atlantic Drilling Ltd. (NYSE:NADL) . Each of these stocks sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).