New York, May 23, 2026, 16:04 EDT
- Energy Transfer ended Friday at $20.07, gaining 0.3% on the session but slipping roughly 0.4% for the week.
- U.S. regulators are letting the Dakota Access Pipeline continue running, but with stricter environmental and safety terms.
- U.S. stocks won’t trade this weekend. Markets are also closed Monday for Memorial Day.
Energy Transfer LP barely moved for the week. That came after the company secured a regulatory win late in the week for the Dakota Access Pipeline. The legal situation for the oil line has cleared up, but the stock is still hovering just below its recent highs.
U.S. markets are closed Saturday and won’t open again until Tuesday because of Memorial Day. The NYSE counts May 25 as a market holiday in 2026, according to its holiday calendar.
Energy Transfer units finished Friday at $20.07, ticking up 0.3% for the day. That’s off from $20.15 last week. The units reached $20.70 on Wednesday, then slipped, price-history data show.
The move trailed the broader market. The S&P 500 added 0.9% this week. The Dow climbed 2.1% to end Friday at 50,579.70, data from AP shows.
Midstream names were stronger on Friday. Kinder Morgan was up, closing at $33.79. Williams Companies finished at $78.47 and ONEOK at $94.03. All three posted bigger daily gains than Energy Transfer, according to market data. Pipeline and storage companies are known as midstream operators, since they handle, process, or store oil and gas instead of producing or retailing it.
Army Corps says Dakota Access pipeline can keep running, but with tighter rules. That follows a lengthy environmental review of its path under Lake Oahe. Energy Transfer operates the pipeline, which moves as much as 750,000 barrels daily from North Dakota to Illinois.
Dakota Access Pipeline is facing tougher rules, with extra leak detection, more water testing and requirements for emergency water-supply planning and outside safety reviews. Regulators stopped short of allowing new pipeline segments at the crossing.
Energy Transfer said it was pleased with the decision. Vicki Granado, vice president of corporate communications, said Dakota Access has run safely for almost 10 years and called it a “critical part” of U.S. energy infrastructure. Reuters
Opposition to the pipeline continues. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe said it will “evaluate all legal and political options,” while AP said more litigation is likely over the pipeline. AP News
Energy Transfer’s yield is a factor, too. The company paid its first-quarter distribution of $0.3375 per common unit on May 20, which comes out to $1.35 on an annual basis. That worked out to a yield near 6.7% at Friday’s close.
Energy Transfer said earlier this month that adjusted EBITDA jumped 20% in the first quarter to $4.94 billion. Adjusted EBITDA is earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, tweaked for some items; investors look at it as a rough way to track how much cash the business is generating. The company now expects 2026 adjusted EBITDA between $18.2 billion and $18.6 billion, and it raised its 2026 growth capex guidance to $5.5 billion-$5.9 billion.
Energy Transfer management linked the guidance to volume growth in natural gas, crude oil and NGLs including ethane and propane. Co-CEO Tom Long said first quarter results showed the company’s assets are “well-positioned.” Mackie McCrea, the other co-CEO, said demand for products like ethane, propane and butane should “continue to grow.” Energy Transfer Facts
Artificial-intelligence demand is still the big story in the sector. Christopher Louney at RBC Capital Markets said U.S. natural gas use from data centers could hit 6.1 billion cubic feet per day by 2030. He also pointed to a “strategic advantage” for domestic gas, saying it’s less exposed to shocks from overseas. RBC noted the Energy Transfer Tiger Pipeline expansion in Louisiana as another signal that gas infrastructure is connecting to hyperscale data-center growth. RBC Capital Markets
The week ahead doesn’t look simple. The Dakota Access ruling brings some regulatory clarity, but new conditions and expected lawsuits keep headline risk front and center. Crude could drop if U.S.-Iran talks make progress. Slower data-center construction—from regulations, turbine shortages, or local pushback—could weigh on midstream stocks. RBC reported that about $98 billion worth of data-center projects were blocked or delayed in the second quarter of 2025 due to community opposition.
Energy Transfer faces a straightforward test when markets open Tuesday—can the stock stay near $20. Traders have to balance a higher payout, better 2026 guidance and more clarity on Dakota Access with shares that already rallied toward the May peak.
