As promised, natural gas pipeline giant Kinder Morgan (NYSE: KMI) returned to growth mode in 2018. Overall, the company hauled in $1.247 billion ($0.56 per share) of distributable cash flow during the first quarter, which was 3% higher than the year-ago period, and beat its forecast.Those strong results, when combined with an improving financial profile, enabled Kinder Morgan to follow through with its promise to boost its dividend by 60% this year.