USA Compression Partners, LP (USAC) Stock Price & How to Invest

USA Compression Partners owns a fleet of natural gas compression packages and rents them to producers, processors, gatherers, and pipeline operators under fixed monthly fee contracts. The work is measured in horsepower, and the partnership focuses on the large midstream end of it rather than small wellhead units. At June 30, 2026 the fleet stood at ~4.95 million horsepower, of which ~4.46 million was revenue-generating across ~6,508 compression units, at average utilization of ~92.0%. It reports as a single segment. Headquarters is in Dallas, and USAC Management had ~885 full-time employees at the end of 2025, with another ~594 added through the January 2026 purchase of J-W Power Company. Energy Transfer owns 100% of the general partner and ~46.1 million common units, roughly a ~32% limited partner interest, and supplies shared back-office staff.

The J-W Power deal is why recent numbers look so different from the prior year. USAC paid ~$912 million, split between ~$455 million of cash and ~18.2 million newly issued units, and picked up two compression fabrication plants in Texas. Second-quarter 2026 revenue was ~$342.1 million against ~$250.1 million a year earlier, net income was ~$45.7 million, and Distributable Cash Flow was ~$125.3 million at ~1.65x coverage. Average monthly revenue per revenue-generating horsepower rose to ~$22.84 from ~$21.31, and trailing twelve-month revenue is ~$1.18 billion. At roughly ~$26.76 per unit the partnership carries a ~$3.88 billion market value and pays ~$0.525 quarterly, an annualized ~$2.10 near a ~7.8% yield. The central question is arithmetic: the fleet grew faster than demand for it, utilization slipped from ~94.4% to ~92.0% and Adjusted EBITDA margin from ~59.8% to ~56.5%, while net long-term debt climbed to ~$2.94 billion.

Utilization fell to ~92.0% from ~94.4% a year earlier while fleet horsepower grew ~28.3%, which is what adding capacity faster than it gets contracted looks like. Net long-term debt of ~$2.94 billion sits at roughly ~3.7x the midpoint of guided 2026 Adjusted EBITDA, including ~$1.21 billion drawn on a floating-rate revolver, ~$1.00 billion of 7.125% notes due 2029, and ~$750.0 million of 6.250% notes due 2033, so quarterly interest expense of ~$49.3 million is a standing claim on cash ahead of the distribution. Demand for compression tracks natural gas and crude production, and a drilling slowdown shows up first as idle horsepower and then as renegotiated rates. Extended equipment lead times support pricing on existing fleets while delaying revenue from units already ordered. The partnership also carries ~$196.5 million of deferred income taxes from acquired corporate subsidiaries, and Texas imposes an entity-level margin tax, so some tax is paid at the partnership level.

5 analysts publish price targets on USAC, averaging $29.60 against a $26.76 price as of August 2026, or +10.6%. The published targets run from $28.00 to $33.00, a narrow spread, and the ratings split 1 buy, 3 hold, 1 sell. Over the last six months there have been 3 raises and 0 cuts among the published actions. A price target is what an analyst published on a date, not a prediction, and sell-side ratings skew positive across the whole market.

Read the full USAC forecast and price target for the target table, the recent rating actions by firm, and how the consensus has shifted.

We give no verdict on USA Compression Partners, LP. Both cases are real, which is why the question is contested at all, so here is the strongest version of each.

The case for buying. Contracted horsepower and pricing. Average revenue-generating horsepower reached ~4.45 million in the second quarter of 2026, up ~25.2% year over year, and average monthly revenue per horsepower rose ~7.2% to ~$22.84. The most optimistic published target, $33.00, assumes this works close to its best case.

The case against. Utilization fell to ~92.0% from ~94.4% a year earlier while fleet horsepower grew ~28.3%, which is what adding capacity faster than it gets contracted looks like. The most pessimistic target, $28.00, is roughly what USAC is worth if this bites instead.

Read the full bull and bear case on USAC, including what would have to change to break either one. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

A simple financial snapshot. These are approximations and refresh quarterly; for current figures see USA Compression Partners, LP's investor relations page or your broker.

• Revenue (TTM): ~$1.18B
• Q2 2026 revenue: ~$342.1M (+~37% YoY)
• Q2 2026 Adjusted EBITDA: ~$193.2M (~56.5% margin)
• 2026 Adjusted EBITDA guidance: ~$770M to ~$800M
• Market cap: ~$3.88B (~145.0M units)
• Long-term debt, net: ~$2.94B

At roughly ~$26.76 per unit, enterprise value lands near ~$6.8 billion, or about ~8.7x the midpoint of guided 2026 Adjusted EBITDA. The trailing P/E near ~25x reads high for an asset-heavy business because depreciation of ~$89.1 million a quarter suppresses net income; guided Distributable Cash Flow of ~$480 million to ~$510 million is closer to ~$3.30 to ~$3.50 per unit, putting the units near ~7.6x to ~8.1x that measure.

If you want USAC exposure as part of a larger bundle rather than directly, these ETFs hold it meaningfully. Weights are approximate and refresh quarterly.

Other names that sit close to USAC: same theme, named as a direct competitor, or held beside it in the same funds. Each entry says which. Worth a look if you are thinking about diversification within a thesis rather than concentration on one ticker.

There are three common ways to get USAC exposure. Buy shares (or fractional shares) directly at any major broker. Hold an ETF that includes it (AMLP), which spreads the position across many companies. Or build it into a focused thematic portfolio, so USAC sits alongside other stocks that express the same thesis.

Walnut takes the portfolio route. Describe a thesis where USAC fits (for example “AI infrastructure” or “dividend-growth large-caps”) and the AI proposes 5 to 6 constituents with target weights. You review the plan and fund it through your own broker when you're ready.

New to this? Start with how to invest in stocks, see how to analyze a stock with AI, or compare the best AI stock analyzers.

The ~$912 million J-W Power acquisition made USAC roughly ~28% larger by fleet horsepower and pushed net long-term debt to ~$2.94 billion, so the question is whether contract pricing and utilization hold long enough to cover the ~$2.10 annual distribution and pay that balance down.

Whether USAC is worth buying today depends more on your time horizon and what you already hold than on any single call. We walk through valuation, what would have to go right, and the risks in is USAC a buy or a sell?, and where the stock could go from here in the USAC stock forecast.

For income investors, whether USAC pays a dividend and how the payout looks is covered in does USAC pay a dividend? And to weigh USAC against a peer, read the full side-by-side comparisons: USAC vs KGS and USAC vs KOD.