Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE: PXD) operates in the highly volatile energy sector. It's an area where investors need to go in recognizing the inherent swings they'll face as oil prices rise and fall. But when it comes to Pioneer, there's an added twist on the dividend front. And if you don't know what it is, it'll be hard to make a good buy, sell, or hold decision around the stock.

Pioneer is an upstream energy producer. That means all it does is drill for oil and natural gas, which are highly volatile commodities. This is different from a company like (NYSE: CVX), where the business spans the upstream, midstream (pipelines), and downstream (chemicals and refining) segments of the industry. Chevron's diversification helps to soften the financial peaks and valleys. Pioneer's financial results are subject to more dramatic highs and lows.

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