Updated on May 18th, 2026 by Bob Ciura
Oil and gas royalty trusts are now offering exceptionally high distributions to their investors, resulting in much higher yields than the ~1.2% average dividend yield of the S&P 500.
We have created a spreadsheet of high dividend stocks with dividend yields of 5% or more…
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In this article, we will discuss the prospects of the highest-yielding royalty trusts in the Sure Analysis Research Database.
Table of Contents
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- High-Yield Royalty Trust No. 7: Permian Basin Royalty Trust (PBT)
- High-Yield Royalty Trust No. 6: San Juan Basin Royalty Trust (SJT)
- High-Yield Royalty Trust No. 5: Cross Timbers Royalty Trust (CRT)
- High-Yield Royalty Trust No. 4: Sabine Royalty Trust (SBR)
- High-Yield Royalty Trust No. 3: Permianville Royalty Trust (PVL)
- High-Yield Royalty Trust No. 2: PermRock Royalty Trust (PRT)
- High-Yield Royalty Trust No. 1: Mesa Royalty Trust (MTR)
High-Yield Royalty Trust No. 7: Permian Basin Royalty Trust (PBT)
- Dividend Yield: 0.9%
Permian Basin Royalty Trust is an oil and gas trust, which was founded in 1980. In 2023, about 55% of output was oil and 45% was gas, but 85% of revenues came from oil.
PBT is a combination trust: unit holders have a 75% net overriding royalty interest in Waddell Ranch Properties in Texas, which includes several oil and gas wells; and a 95% net overriding royalty interest in the Texas Royalty Properties, which includes various oil wells.
The trust’s assets are static in that no further properties can be added. The trust has no operations but is merely a pass through vehicle for the royalties. PBT had royalty income of $11.6 million in 2025.
In late March, PBT reported (3/27/26) financial results for the full fiscal 2025. The average realized price of gas improved but the price of oil decreased significantly over the prior year.
As a result, distributable income per unit decreased -43%, from $0.54 to $0.31.
After some months of disappointing distributions, which resulted from high operating expenses on the Waddell Ranch properties, PBT boosted its distributions in the last two months of 2023.
However, it has reduced them again in recent months due to high operating expenses on the Waddell Ranch properties and lackluster prices of oil and gas.
In the first three months of this year, PBT has offered total distributions of $0.065 per unit, which correspond to a 1.2% annualized yield. We are concerned over the unreliable and volatile business performance of PBT.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on Permian Basin Royalty Trust (PBT) (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
High-Yield Royalty Trust No. 6: San Juan Basin Royalty Trust (SJT)
- Dividend Yield: 2.3%
San Juan Basin Royalty Trust (SJT) is a medium sized gas trust (it produces a negligible amount of oil), set up in 1980 by Southland Royalty Company. The producing properties are all in northern New Mexico, in the San Juan Basin.
They are currently operated by Hilcorp San Juan, L.P., which acquired the interests in 2017. The trust’s assets are static in that no further properties can be added. It had royalty income of $6.9 million in 2024.
In late March, SJT reported (3/27/2026) results for Q4-2025. Production of gas grew 19% and the price of gas surged 29% over the prior year’s quarter but capital expenses increased significantly due to the drilling of two new horizontal wells. As a result, SJT did not pay any distributions.
SJT has suspended its distributions since May-2024 due to excess operating costs and weak gas prices. It will resume distributions when costs moderate and gas prices grow. As production costs have somewhat decreased, SJT may resume distributions in late 2026.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on SJT (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
High-Yield Royalty Trust No. 5: Cross Timbers Royalty Trust (CRT)
- Dividend Yield: 3.1%
Cross Timbers Royalty Trust is an oil and gas trust (about 50/50), set up in 1991 by XTO Energy.
Its unitholders have a 90% net profit interest in producing properties in Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico; and a 75% net profit interest in working interest properties in Texas and Oklahoma.
In late March, CRT reported (3/27/26) results for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025. Oil volumes declined -7% but gas volumes surged 59% over the prior year’s quarter.
The average realized price of oil decreased -14% but the average price of gas grew 16%. As a result, distributable cash flow (DCF) per unit grew 11%.
Based on its distributions in the first 3 months of this year, CRT is offering an annualized yield of only 3.1%.
Nevertheless, the sky-high oil prices that have resulted from the war in Iran are likely to significantly increase distributions in the upcoming months.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on Cross Timbers Royalty Trust (CRT) (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
High-Yield Royalty Trust No. 4: Sabine Royalty Trust (SBR)
- Dividend Yield: 5.6%
Sabine Royalty Trust (SBR) is an oil and gas trust set up in 1983 by Sabine Corporation. At initiation, the trust initially had an expected reserve life of 9 to 10 years but it has surpassed expectations by an impressive margin.
The trust consists of royalty and mineral interests in producing properties and proved oil and gas properties in Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas. It is roughly 2/3 oil and 1/3 gas in terms of revenues.
The trust’s assets are static in that no further properties can be added. The trust has no operations but is merely a pass through vehicle for royalties. SBR had royalty income of $82.6 million in 2024 and has a current market cap of $965 million.
In late February, SBR reported (2/27/26) financial results for the full fiscal 2025. Production of oil and gas decreased over the prior year.
In addition, the average realized price of oil dipped -17% while the average realized price of gas grew 39%. Distributable cash flow per unit dipped -5.5%.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on SBR (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
High-Yield Royalty Trust No. 3: Permianville Royalty Trust (PVL)
- Dividend Yield: 6.2%
Permianville Royalty Trust (PVL) was incorporated in 2011 and is based in Houston, Texas.
It operates as a statutory trust and owns a net profits interest representing the right to receive 80% of the net profits from the sale of oil and natural gas production from properties located in the states of Texas, Louisiana and New Mexico.
The trust’s assets are static in that no further properties can be added. In addition, the trust is passive, as it has no control over operating costs and the rate of production.
In late March, PVL reported (3/23/26) results for the full fiscal 2025. Gas volumes increased 16% but oil volumes decreased -31% over the prior year.
In addition, the average realized oil and gas prices decreased -19% and -27%, respectively. Nevertheless, thanks to much lower operating expenses, total distributions grew from $0.09 to $0.13.
PVL suspended its distributions in the first half of 2024, as its operating expenses exceeded its operating income, primarily due to low prices and high operating expenses.
The trust resumed distributions in July-2024 but it suspended distributions again in the first seven months of last year. It reinstated its distributions in August-2025.
If the war in Iran lasts for a considerable period, it will provide a strong tailwind to PVL thanks to nearly 4-year high oil prices.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on PVL (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
High-Yield Royalty Trust No. 2: PermRock Royalty Trust (PRT)
- Dividend Yield: 9.8%
PermRock Royalty Trust is a trust formed in late 2017 by Boaz Energy, a company that is focused on the acquisition, development and operation of oil and natural gas properties in the Permian Basin.
The Trust benefits from the unique characteristics of the Permian Basin, which is the most prolific oil-producing area in the U.S.
On March 27th, 2026, PermRock Royalty reported full year 2025 results for the period ending December 31, 2025. Net profits income received by the trust was $5.56 million, compared to $5.96 million in the prior year.
The average realized sale price of oil declined by 14% year-over-year, while natural gas rose 3.5%. Distributable income for the trust came to $4.71 million, down 8.7% from $5.16 million in the prior year period and distributable income per unit (“DIPU”) of $0.39 was three cents short of $0.42 in the prior year.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on PRT (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
High-Yield Royalty Trust No. 1: Mesa Royalty Trust (MTR)
- Dividend Yield: 11.4%
Mesa Royalty Trust was formed in 1979 and is based in Houston, Texas. It holds overriding royalty interests in natural gas and oil properties in the Hugoton field of Kansas and the San Juan Basin of New Mexico and Colorado.
The Trust does not operate the assets it receives 11.44% of 90% of the net proceeds from production on these properties after operating and marketing costs, with the interests managed and developed by third-party working interest owners such as Hilcorp San Juan LP, Scout Energy Group, Simcoe LLC, and Red Willow Production Company.
On March 31st, 2026, Mesa Royalty Trust reported its results for the full year ended December 31st, 2025.
The Trust recorded distributable income of $0.2628 per unit before reserve adjustments, which after net changes to the Contingent Reserve resulted in $0.2328 per unit actually distributed, up from $0.2142 for the full year 2024.
Royalty income of $601,839 came entirely from the San Juan Basin, New Mexico properties operated by Hilcorp, while the Hugoton and San Juan Basin Colorado properties again generated no royalty income, as operating costs and prior period adjustments continued to exceed revenues.
Excess production costs increased to $938,738 as of year-end, up from $793,838 at year-end 2024, and must be recovered before cash flow from those properties can resume.
On April 20th, Mesa declared a $0.0402 per share share monthly dividend.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on MTR (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
Final Thoughts
On the surface, oil and gas royalty trusts are attractive as they widely offer higher yields than the S&P 500 average.
However, oil and gas prices are infamous for their dramatic swings. Investors should also be aware of the excessive risk of all these trusts near the peak of their cycle.
The ideal time to buy these trusts is during a severe downturn of the energy sector, when these stocks plunge and may become undervalued.
As mentioned above, all the oil and gas trusts are highly risky due to the natural decline of their production and their sensitivity to the prices of oil and gas.
If you are interested in finding high-quality dividend growth stocks and/or other high-yield securities and income securities, the following Sure Dividend resources will be useful:
High-Yield Individual Security Research
Other Sure Dividend Resources
- Dividend Kings: 50+ years of rising dividends
- Dividend Aristocrats: 25+ years of rising dividends and in the S&P 500
- Monthly Dividend Stocks: Individual securities that pay out every month