PAA
Hot AirAI neutralPlains All American Pipeline, L.P. · Energy · United States · $18.8B cap · $61.3M/day traded
$23.92 -2.5% · close 6 Nov · scored 7 Nov
Hot Air: Strong momentum and nothing else: weak business, rich price.
As of 7 Nov 2026, the MoatMap Score for Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. (PAA) is 75/100, ranked against 25,000+ stocks in 38 markets (Quality 44, Value 48, Momentum 79, each scored against its sector).
Does the score work? Each tenth of the ranking, tracked monthly. See the record →
Plains All American runs one of the largest crude oil gathering and pipeline networks in North America, centred on the Permian. It earns mostly on the volumes it moves, which ties it directly to non-Gulf production if a Middle East risk premium sustains US drilling. It is adding to its network with a $585 million Powder River Basin acquisition and is refinancing its preferred units with junior subordinated notes. The business is fee-based but capital-intensive and uses leverage, with returns closer to utility-like than compounder-like. The macro tailwind is real, but it works mainly through production volumes rather than rates.
ABOUT PLAINS ALL AMERICAN PIPELINE, L.P.
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Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. is a leading North American energy infrastructure company specializing in the transportation, storage, and marketing of crude oil and natural gas liquids (NGLs). Its extensive network of pipelines and storage terminals provides critical midstream services, establishing a significant competitive moat through high capital barriers to entry and demand for essential infrastructure. As a Master Limited Partnership (MLP), it focuses on stable, fee-based assets.
FINANCIAL SUMMARY (USD)
| Year | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | CAGR | TTM | 2026E | 2027E | Fwd CAGR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | 57.3B | 47.3B | 48.9B | 44.3B | -8.3% | 52.3B | 59.7B | 62.7B | 19.1% |
| EPS | 1.19 | 1.40 | 0.73 | 1.66 | 11.7% | 0.60 | 1.84 | 2.10 | 12.4% |
| Shares | 698.4M | 701.0M | 703.8M | 705.5M | +1.0% | 705.6M | — | — | — |
| Debt | 8.8B | 8.0B | 7.8B | 11.5B | 9.4% | 8.6B | — | — | — |
| Equity | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Op CF | 2.4B | 2.7B | 2.5B | 2.9B | 6.8% | 3.0B | — | — | — |
| Inv CF | -526.0M | -702.0M | -1.5B | -3.8B | — | — | — | — | — |
| Fin CF | -1.9B | -2.0B | -1.1B | 799.0M | — | — | — | — | — |
Above its 200-day average and 11% below its 52-week high.
Calmer than 91% of stocks we rank over the past year (volatility 20% a year).
How this is worked out
The MoatMap Score weighs the business, its price and its trend. The price check reads only the chart: the price side of the Momentum score, in words.
The rules: Still falling is a new 52-week low in the last two weeks, at least 25% below the high. Finding a floor is no new low since. Turning up is 20 or more trading days without a new low, at least 10% off it, and back above a rising 50-day average. In an uptrend is above the 200-day average and within 15% of the high.
In 2,112 US drawdowns since 2001, buying while the price was still falling was followed by a further 20% drop 42% of the time. Waiting for a turn (the Turning up rule above) cut that to 33%, at about 7% higher prices and with no better returns. Part of that cut is simply not buying: 13% of falls never turned, and waiting kept those out. Among turns that were bought, 38% still fell another 20%, and 33% of turns were followed by a new low within six months. The benefit was largest in crashes such as 2008 and 2020.
What it measures: how much the price moved day to day over the past year, scaled to a yearly figure (annualised volatility) and ranked against every stock we cover. Very calm under 20% a year, Calm 20 to 30%, Average 30 to 40%, Bumpy 40 to 55%, Very bumpy above that.
What we found: across about 13,500 stocks in 34 markets (2002 to 2025), past swings were a good guide to the next year's, and bumpier stocks fell further. How much further changed too much between eras to put a number on it.
Calm is not safe: a calm stock can still slide steadily.
Rules fixed before any data was fetched. Describes the chart, not a recommendation.
SCORE BREAKDOWN
FUNDAMENTALS
SECTOR PEERS
Closest peers in Energy, ranked by industry match, size, and score similarity. Cross-listings of PAA are excluded.
| Ticker | Company | Mkt Cap | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| PAA | Plains All American Pipeline, L.P.(you) | $18.8B | 75 |
| CQP | Cheniere Energy Partners, L.P. | $32.0B | 68 |
| PAGP | Plains GP Holdings, L.P. | $6.7B | 72 |
| VNOM | Viper Energy, Inc. | $16.9B | 46 |
| HESM | Hess Midstream LP | $6.3B | 63 |
| ET | Energy Transfer LP | $70.4B | 60 |
| VG | Venture Global, Inc. | $35.0B | 45 |
| INSW | International Seaways, Inc. | $5.7B | 92 |
| AM | Antero Midstream Corporation | $9.9B | 45 |
| KNTK | Kinetik Holdings Inc. | $9.4B | 44 |
Peer medians: ROE 10.2% · P/E 13.9x · Gross margin 45.5%
Company Deep Dive
A 10,000-word report: the business and its segments, what management promised on earnings calls and whether it delivered, the competition, and how things could turn out.