- Pays: quarterly — usually going ex-dividend in early February, May, August, and November.
- Paying since: 2006 — through two oil crashes, a pandemic, and one famous cut.
- What it is: one of America's largest PIPELINE operators — a master limited partnership (MLP) moving natural gas and oil and passing the toll income to unitholders.
- The record: halved the payout in 2020, then raised it steadily — from $0.61 (2021) to $1.32 (2025) per unit, with small increases most quarters since.
- The tax wrinkle: as an MLP, ET issues a Schedule K-1 at tax time, not a 1099 — different paperwork, often deferred taxes, and a real consideration before buying.
ET is a master limited partnership: distributions come from pipeline cash flows, arrive with a K-1 tax form, and were cut in 2020 when energy markets collapsed — context for the high yield.
ET pays quarterly. Each point below is one distribution since 2006 — including the 2020 cut and the steady staircase of raises since.
Loading the latest data…
Each point is one payment; the line ends at the most recent payout. The table below totals them by year.
| Recent Ex-Dividend Dates | Distribution / Share |
|---|
"Next expected" is estimated from ET's recent payment rhythm — the fund announces exact dates shortly before each payout, and the data feed can lag a few days. You must own shares before the ex-dividend date to receive that payout; the cash typically arrives days later. See every fund's upcoming date on the live dividend calendar.
A real total-return estimate, assuming every payout was reinvested — including what happened to the share price. Before taxes and fees. Past performance does not predict the future.
Now Estimate Your Own Future
These are assumptions, not a prediction. Want the full chart and tax options? Open the full calculator →
Energy Transfer's ~120,000 miles of pipe earn fees for moving natural gas and crude — largely volume-based tolls rather than bets on energy prices. That cash funds one of the market's most-watched high yields, currently backed by comfortable coverage and a management publicly committed to small regular raises. The 2020 halving is the asterisk: when energy markets seized, the payout was cut to protect the balance sheet, and it took until 2023 to fully recover.
The bigger practical caveat is paperwork: MLP distributions arrive with a K-1 form, can complicate IRAs (UBTI rules), and are mostly tax-deferred return of capital rather than qualified dividends — genuinely nice in taxable accounts for patient holders, genuinely annoying at tax time. Our tax guide covers the basics.
| Year | Total Distributions / Share | Payments | Change vs Prior Year |
|---|
Data source: Yahoo Finance. Figures are per share; the current year may be partial and figures should be verified against official sources.
Calculated from complete calendar years in the data above. Past results don't guarantee future payments.
When Is ET's Next Ex-Dividend Date?
ET pays quarterly — usually going ex-dividend in early February, May, August, and November. The exact date of each payout is announced by the fund only shortly beforehand, so no site can promise the next date — but the live schedule box above shows the most recent ex-dividend date and the expected window for the next one, computed from ET's actual payment rhythm. Remember: you must own shares before the ex-dividend date to receive that payout.
ET's Record: Cut Once, Rebuilt Higher
Energy Transfer has paid quarterly distributions since 2006, and the modern chapter is the one investors care about: the 2020 energy crash forced a halving, and management has spent every year since rebuilding — $0.61 per unit in 2021, $1.32 by 2025, with small raises most quarters. At a unit price near $20, that's a yield around 7% from toll-style cash flows.
What You Actually Own
A unitholder owns a slice of the pipes themselves — gathering, processing, and transporting a huge share of U.S. natural gas and crude. Revenue is predominantly fee-based, which is why the payout survived every oil-price swing except 2020's demand collapse. The structure is an MLP, which is why the yield is high (no corporate tax layer) and why tax season brings a K-1 instead of a 1099.
Where ET Fits
ET is income-first infrastructure — a different species from both dividend growers like SCHD and option-income funds. It pairs well with either, in taxable accounts where the deferral works hardest (mind the K-1), and it's best held by investors who remember 2020 as context rather than ancient history. Next expected date on the live calendar.
The Tax Rules Behind Every Payout
Qualified, ordinary, return of capital, K-1s — where each type of income lands on your tax bill, in plain English.
Read: How Are Dividends Taxed?