Master limited partnership

A master limited partnership (MLP) is a limited partnership that is publicly traded on a securities exchange. It combines the tax benefits of a limited partnership with the liquidity of publicly traded securities.

Background information
Alerian MLP Index | Alerian MLP Index for Master Limited Partnerships - The page includes dropdown tabs, including education on MLPs and a products tab showing exchange-traded funds and notes linked to Alerian indexes:

Tutorials

 * By Alerian MLP Index for Master Limited Partnerships:
 * MLP 101: This section is designed for people that are brand new to the MLP space or those that simply want a refresher.
 * MLP 201 MLP 201: This section of the MLP University is intended for people who have worked through MLP 101 or people who already have a solid understanding of the MLP asset class.
 * MLP 301 MLP 301: Think of this as a graduate level education in MLPs.
 * Primers, Presentations, and Other MLP Websites, from National Association of Publicly Traded Partnerships
 * Tax Guide To Master Limited Partnerships, William Baldwin, Forbes, December 2, 2010.

From Talk:Exchange-traded fund
Based on comments in this post: Re: Pat Robertson investing idea [Master Limited Partnership, United States Oil Fund and United States Natural Gas Fund were noted to be inappropriate examples. A good tutorial site was recommended: National Association of Publicly Traded Partnerships, which leads to this page: Presentations and Primers.

ETF Guide shows United States Oil Fund (USO) as an Exchange Traded Security - which I think is different than an Exchange Traded Fund. Is it appropriate to list MLPs in this page? If so, should the details be updated (as described in the tutorials)?


 * Taxation of MLPs are incredibly complex.
 * Would it be appropriate to add a caveat that this investment should be limited to high net worth individuals?

--LadyGeek 16:58, 22 June 2013 (CDT)

MLPs don't belong on this page, because they are individual investments (stocks are also exchange-traded securities), not ETFs. If we have a wiki page on MLPs, it should be a separate page. (I don't know whether we need one, and if we do, I don't know enough about them to write a good page.) Grabiner 21:24, 25 June 2013 (CDT)


 * I agree and have removed the section. Based on the referenced thread, unless we want to warn investors that this product is not for everyone, I don't think we need a dedicated page. For reference:

Master limited partnership
Some commodity exchange traded vehicles are structured as Master Limited Partnerships (registered under the Securities Act of 1933). Characteristics include:
 * 1) As holders of a MLP, investors are required to report their share of the MLP's income, gains, losses and deductions on tax returns even if there are no cash distributions. Futures contracts are currently taxed at a hybrid rate of 60% long-term and 40% short-term gains, irrespective of the actual holding period.
 * 2) Tax reporting is done with a Schedule K-1.