Global X MLP & Energy Infrastructure ETF

MLPX

Market cap $2.49B

I experienced the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta on Sunday night and Monday morning. Oh sorry, excuse me, the Exxon Mobile Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.

Given heightened economic uncertainty, I am leaning more defensive and sticking with my dividend growth investing strategy, emphasizing diversification and income stability. The frozen housing market, soft labor conditions, and stagnating consumer spending signal potential economic weakness, despite optimism in select sectors like tech. My ETF portfolio review shows shifting leadership, with midstream energy outperforming previously, but preferreds and tech-focused ETFs now leading as trends evolve.

Midstream energy ETFs like AMLP and MLPX are strong macro plays, benefiting from long-term trends in U.S. natural gas and oil flows. MLPX offers broader diversification, lower fees, and a sturdier balance sheet profile than AMLP, making it attractive for long-term investors. AMLP provides higher yield but comes with higher concentration and leverage, appealing more to income-focused investors seeking immediate returns.

I remain committed to dividend growth investing, adapting my strategy to balance growth, yield, and defensiveness amid demographic and economic shifts. My 'galley ship' portfolio model uses ballast (cash), rowers (compounders), and sails (high-yielders) to optimize for both income growth and stability. Recent portfolio adjustments focus on defensive, recession-resistant stocks and ETFs, emphasizing passive income growth regardless of market cycles.

A diversified, funds-only portfolio can deliver reliable 6-7% income and market-matching growth, ideal for retirees seeking simplicity and peace of mind. Asset allocation spans dividend growth, bonds, real estate, energy, covered calls, utilities, commodities, preferreds, and specialty funds for broad diversification. Fund selection prioritizes low fees, competent management, and minimal leverage, balancing income, growth, and capital preservation across market cycles.

Retail-driven meme stock mania is back, echoing 2021's irrational exuberance, with surges in fundamentally weak, heavily shorted stocks. Market leadership is shifting from the "Magnificent 7" to the "Fabulous 5" AI giants, driven by proprietary technology and AI infrastructure advantages. Despite market optimism, I remain concerned about persistent tariffs, which threaten corporate margins and are largely ignored by investors.

I have been writing about ETFs since I started on Seeking Alpha two years ago, and it's been great in terms of engagement compared to writing about stocks. That being said, there are some tricks to writing about ETFs that analysts may miss. They are different from stocks and other funds in weird ways! Writing about ETFs can be very rewarding, especially on the engagement front, as articles tend to have longer shelf lives with readers and higher engagement levels (at least from my experience).

In an uncertain market, I stick to five core investing principles: stay the course, specialize, diversify, trust proven experts, and keep some cash. Dividend growth investing (DGI) remains my strategy, with a focus on reliable cash flow compounding and growing dividends to eventually replace labor income. I diversify beyond my real estate core by blending passive DGI ETFs and selecting active ETFs with proven outperformance.

It's impossible not to notice the surge in oil market volatility, as signaled by the spike in the OVX. Although MLPX has a high standard deviation, its holding distribution is, in my view, less exposed to this risk compared to its competitors. Considering its competitive dividend, I believe it could offer alpha in the MLP market over the next quarter.

The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) has staged an epic recovery and is now positive year to date as investors look past ongoing macro challenges and focus on long-term growth.