You can learn a lot about an industry by listening to earnings conference calls, digging into the quarterly numbers and financial results.

However, there’s truly no substitute for real boots-on-the-ground research, attending conferences and industry events and talking to management teams and sector experts face-to-face.

That’s why Roger Conrad and I always look forward to the MLP Association’s annual MLP & Energy Infrastructure Conference (MEIC 2018) this year held in Orlando, Florida in late May.

This event, the largest of its kind focused on the high-yield, tax-advantaged midstream energy business, afforded us the opportunity to listen to presentations, meet and speak with senior management at a long list of partnerships and energy infrastructure firms.

We’ll have more insight on our take-aways over the next few days. However, it was notable that the event was somewhat smaller than just a few years ago – the long bear market in energy stocks and MLPs has clearly left the group largely unloved and out of favor.