They’re ranked as our #2 and #3 Best Buys respectively, so we’re obviously fans. MMP has held up so well that its near-term upside potential is modest relative to MLPs like ETE that have been whacked very hard. But there is a lot of downside protection in both MMP and EPD as businesses with very stable revenue, top credit ratings for the sector and solid cash flow surpluses relative to what they distribute.

Well WMB would be exchanged into ETE proxy ETC if this shaky deal does in fact somehow close, so WMB shareholders would feel the full brunt of any distruibution cut at ETE. And Energy Transfer has obviously signaled the possibility of a cut if a deal does go through on the original terms. But the higher crude goes the less plausible this scenario sounds to me.

I just posted an update: http://www.investingdaily.com/mlp-profits/articles/25203/a-stirring-proposition-from-green-plains/ The short answer is no, I wouldn’t add this now Hold-rated stock, but not ready to dump it here either. It’s continuing to earn 35% of the current price per share for the monent even while cutting the yield to 11% based on where it’s trading now. And there are a few potential catalysts for a rebound, including a possible resolution with HMM and higher tanker re-charters down the line.