TULSA, Okla., April 2, 2007 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ -- ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE: OKE) announced today that it was named the top stock for 2006 by Public Utilities Fortnightly. ONEOK ranked first, with a 67 percent total shareholder return -- dividends plus change in stock price -- in 2006 and over a three-year time period.
"Delivering shareholder value is at the core of our long-term strategy," said John W. Gibson, chief executive officer of ONEOK. "We appreciate the recognition of our efforts to achieve this goal."
To examine how well investors fared, Public Utilities Fortnightly examined total shareholder return of more than 80 companies. Companies were grouped by asset mix, business focus and corporate strategy in five categories: energy delivery, gas distribution, integrated gas, power generation and integrated electric and gas. ONEOK was included in the integrated gas category.
According to Public Utilities Fortnightly, most companies recorded double-digit total shareholder return in 2006. To make the top quartile, a company had to show almost 30 percent returns. For 2006, top-10 companies showed single-year returns of 38 percent or better.
Public Utilities Fortnightly is a publication of Public Utilities Reports, Inc., a leading provider of information and analysis to the electric, natural gas, water and telecommunications industries for more than 85 years.
ONEOK, Inc. (NYSE: OKE) is a diversified energy company. We are the general partner and own 45.7 percent of ONEOK Partners, L.P. (NYSE: OKS), one of the largest publicly traded limited partnerships, which is a leader in the gathering, processing, storage and transportation of natural gas in the U.S. and owns one of the nation's premier natural gas liquids (NGL) systems, connecting much of the natural gas and NGL supply in the Mid-Continent with key market centers. ONEOK is among the largest natural gas distributors in the United States, serving more than 2 million customers in Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas. Our energy services operation focuses primarily on marketing natural gas and related services throughout the U.S. ONEOK is a Fortune 500 company.
For information about ONEOK, Inc. visit the Web site:
http://www.oneok.com.
Analyst Contact: Dan Harrison
918-588-7950
Media Contact: Tom Droege
918-588-7561
OKE-G
SOURCE ONEOK, Inc.
Analysts, Dan Harrison, +1-918-588-7950, or Media, Tom Droege, +1-918-588-7561, both
of ONEOK, Inc.
http://www.oneok.com/