Alerian MLP ETF (AMLP) holds $11.82B in assets with a 7.63% dividend yield and most recent quarterly dividend of $1.01 per share, up from $0.88 in early 2024, while Global X MLP ETF (MLPA) offers a lower 0.45% expense ratio versus AMLP’s 0.85% with similar 7.2% yield; Credit Suisse X-Links Crude Oil Shares Covered Call ETN (USOI) generates a 22% yield through covered call premium collection on oil fund shares but caps upside participation and carries counterparty credit risk; Invesco Optimum Yield Diversified Commodity Strategy No K-1 ETF (PDBC) distributes 3.4% yield across commodity futures with 25% combined crude oil exposure and avoids K-1 tax complexity.
WTI crude oil surging to the 99.6th percentile of its 12-month range and natural gas spiking in January 2026 are driving elevated option premiums and increased throughput volumes through midstream infrastructure, boosting distributions across energy-focused income vehicles.
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WTI crude oil has surged to $112.06 per barrel, up 56% from a month ago and sitting at the 99.6th percentile of its 12-month range. Natural gas hit $7.72 per MMBtu in January 2026 before pulling back. Four ETFs and exchange-traded notes offer yields above 5% with direct or structural exposure to energy prices.
Alerian MLP ETF (NYSEARCA:AMLP) is the largest MLP ETF by assets, with $11.82 billion in net assets and a dividend yield of 7.63%. The fund tracks the Alerian MLP Infrastructure Index (AMZI) and holds a concentrated basket of pipeline and processing partnerships.
The portfolio’s sector breakdown shows how broadly midstream infrastructure touches the energy value chain. Pipeline transportation of petroleum accounts for 28% of the fund, natural gas pipelines for 24%, and gathering and processing for 24%. The top five holdings, Western Midstream Partners, Plains All American Pipeline, Energy Transfer, Enterprise Products Partners, and MPLX, each carry between 12% and 13% weight, making the fund highly concentrated in the largest midstream operators.
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The income story is grounded in contract structure rather than commodity prices. These partnerships collect volume-based tariffs on hydrocarbons moving through their systems. When oil spikes, producers tend to increase output, driving more volume through pipelines. AMLP captures that throughput growth through higher distributions rather than direct commodity price exposure. The fund’s most recent quarterly dividend was $1.01 per share, up from $0.97 in early 2025 and continuing a clear upward trend from $0.88 in early 2024. The fund is up 13% year-to-date.
The expense ratio is 0.85%, all while the fund is structured as a corporation rather than a pass-through entity, resulting in corporate-level taxation and reducing distribution efficiency compared to holding MLPs directly. That tax drag is the primary tradeoff for the simplicity of a 1099 at tax time.
Global X MLP ETF (NYSEARCA:MLPA) covers similar territory to AMLP but with a different index and a lower cost structure. The fund holds $2.1 billion in net assets and carries a 0.45% expense ratio, roughly half of AMLP’s cost. The dividend yield stands at 7.2%.
The fund tracks the Solactive MLP Infrastructure Index and holds 97% in energy. The top three holdings, Enterprise Products Partners at 13%, Energy Transfer at 13%, and MPLX at 11%, overlap significantly with AMLP’s portfolio, though the weighting methodology differs. The fund launched in April 2012 and has returned 134% over five years. The most recent quarterly dividend was $1.00 per share, continuing a steady climb from $0.935 per share throughout most of 2025 and from $0.87 to $0.91 per share in 2024. Year-to-date, the fund has gained 13%, and over the last 12 months, it is up 7.39%.
The practical distinction between MLPA and AMLP comes down to cost and index construction rather than a fundamentally different investment thesis. Both funds hold the same core midstream operators and benefit from the same throughput-fee dynamic. MLPA’s lower expense ratio is a real, compounding advantage over time, particularly for income-focused investors holding for years.
Credit Suisse X-Links Crude Oil Shares Covered Call ETN (NASDAQ:USOI) generates income through a different mechanism. The notes covered calls on shares of the United States Oil Fund (USO), with option premiums collected and passed through as monthly distributions. When crude oil volatility is elevated, option premiums expand, and distributions rise.
The three most recent monthly payments totaled $1.29 in March 2026, $0.91 in February, and $0.42 in January. The trailing annual distribution for 2025 was $12.22 per share, with a current yield of nearly 22%. The ETF has gained 29% year-to-date, reflecting both crude oil appreciation and premium income captured.
The covered call structure means USOI participates in crude oil price increases only up to the strike price of the calls it has written. When oil spikes sharply, the ETN’s upside is capped while the underlying commodity continues higher. The premium income provides a cushion in sideways or declining markets that a pure crude oil fund does not offer.
Two structural risks apply: USOI is an exchange-traded note, a senior unsecured debt obligation of Credit Suisse (now administered by UBS), so counterparty credit risk exists, unlike a standard ETF. The expense ratio is 0.85%, and the fund holds roughly $290 million in assets, making it considerably smaller and less liquid than the MLP funds above.
Invesco Optimum Yield Diversified Commodity Strategy No K-1 ETF (NASDAQ:PDBC) holds a diversified basket of commodity futures spanning energy, metals, and agriculture. Its top exposures include gold at 14%, Brent crude at 13%, WTI crude at 12%, and copper at 6%.
Combined Brent and WTI crude futures account for roughly a quarter of the portfolio, and the fund’s performance in a crude oil spike reflects that weight. The fund holds $5.5 billion in net assets and carries an expense ratio of 0.6%. The dividend yield of 3.4% sits below the 5% threshold of the other three funds, but PDBC distributes income annually, and the actual payout fluctuates with commodity market conditions. In 2022, when energy prices surged, the annual distribution was $1.93 per share.
The “No K-1” in the fund’s name is a practical selling point. Most commodity futures funds generate K-1 partnership tax forms, which complicate tax filing. PDBC is structured to avoid this, issuing a standard 1099 instead.
The tradeoff is dilution. When crude oil is the primary driver of the energy spike thesis, holding a fund where crude accounts for roughly a quarter of assets means the remaining portfolio introduces noise from gold, copper, and agricultural futures with their own supply-and-demand dynamics.
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