Best Chemical Companies To Invest In 2015

With U.S. natural gas supplies still plentiful and relatively cheap, demand for the cleaner-burning fuel is expected to keep growing.

In addition to demand from utility companies, industrial and petrochemical manufacturers, and other energy-intensive firms, some have identified liquefied natural gas, or LNG, exports and natural gas vehicles, or NGVs, as the wildcards that could cause future demand to soar.

But would U.S. natural gas producers ��most of whom have curtailed gas drilling as much as possible over the past couple of years ��be able to keep up if a surge in demand were to materialize?

Will gas producers be able to keep up?
The answer, according�to Jim Tramuto, vice president of governmental and regulatory affairs for Southwestern Energy (NYSE: SWN  ) , is a resounding yes. Speaking at the 2013 U.S. Energy Information Administration Energy Conference in Washington earlier this week, he expressed great confidence about the size of the U.S. shale gas resource base.

Top 5 Communications Equipment Stocks To Buy Right Now: Uralkaliy OAO (URALL.PK)

Uralkaliy OAO (Uralkali OJSC) is a Russia-based company, which is engaged in the chemical industry. The Company specializes in the production of potash fertilizers. Its product portfolio comprises pink muriate of potash (PMOP), white muriate of potash (WMOP) and granular (GMOP). The Company is active through representative offices, located in Moscow and Beijing, as well as numerous subsidiaries, located countrywide and in Panama, Belarus, Singapore, Brazil and others. Uralkaliy OAO operates on the potassium and magnesium deposits located in Berezniki, Perm and Saint Petersburg. Its production assets include seven plants and five mines. Uralkaliy OAO sells its products domestically, as well as abroad in over 40 countries, including the United States, China, Brazil, India and South-East Asia, among others. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Chris Damas]

  This morning Russian potash giant OJSC Uralkali (URALL.PK) presented first half 2013 financial and operating results and more importantly, much anticipated comments on the strategy of the company and the state of the international potash industry, the latter blind-sided by the leading potash company's split with marketing partner JSC Belaruskali of Belarus.

• [By Tim Gallagher]

  The potash spat continues to get uglier, as Belarus investigators reportedly intend to seize property and assets of Russia's Uralkali (URALL.PK) following the collapse of the joint Russian-Belarussian potash venture.

Best Chemical Companies To Invest In 2015: W. R. Grace & Co (GRA)

W.R. Grace & Co. (Grace), incorporated on August 6, 1997, is engaged in the production and sale of specialty chemicals and specialty materials on a global basis. The Company operates in three segments: Grace Catalysts Technologies; Grace Materials Technologies; and Grace Construction Products. Grace Catalysts Technologies will include catalysts and related technologies used in refining, petrochemical and other chemical manufacturing applications. Grace's Advanced Refining Technologies LLC (ART) joint venture will be managed in this segment. Grace Materials Technologies will include engineered materials, coatings and sealants used in industrial, consumer, pharmaceutical and packaging applications. Grace Construction Products will include specialty construction chemicals and specialty building materials used in commercial, infrastructure and residential construction. The Company conducts business in over 40 countries. In July 2012, the Company acquired Rheoset Industria e Comercio de Aditivos Ltda. In November 2012, the Company acquired the assets of Noblestar Catalysts Co., Ltd. In April 2013, it acquired Chemind Construction Products. In December 2013, the Company announced that it has completed the acquisition of the assets of the Polypropylene Licensing and Catalysts business of The Dow Chemical Company.

Refining Technologies

The Company is engaged in developing and manufacturing fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) catalysts and additives for petroleum refiners. Grace markets hydroprocessing catalysts primarily through ART, its joint venture with Chevron Products Company (Chevron). The Company established ART to combine its technology with that of Chevron and to develop, market and sell hydroprocessing catalysts to customers in the petroleum refining industry worldwide. Grace is a supplier of hydroprocessing catalysts designed for processing these feedstocks. The Company offers products for fixed-bed resid hydrotreating, on-stream catalyst replacement, ebullating-bed resid hydro! cracking and distillate hydrotreating processes. It also offers a full line of catalysts, customized for individual refiners, used in processing ultra-low sulfur content gasoline and diesel fuel, including its SMART Catalyst System and ApART catalyst system.

Grace provides enabling technologies that are silica- and silica-alumina-based functional additives and process aids, such as silica gel, colloidal silica, zeolitic adsorbents, precipitated silica and silica-aluminas, for a range of applications. The Company�� product portfolio includes PERKASIL, LUDOX, PHONOSORB, PHONOSORB MTX, SYLOBEAD, SYLOSIV, CRYOSIV, SAFETYSORB, PoliEdge, SYLODENT, SYLOID FP, SYLOBLANC, ELFADENT, SYLOID, DARACLAR, TriSyl, SHIELDEX, SYLOWHITE, SYLOJET, DURAFILL, LUDOX, DAREX, DARAFORM, DARASEAL, DARABLEND, Sincera, Celox, Apperta, Sistiaga, and SAFETYSORB.

Specialty Technologies

The Company is a provider of catalyst systems and catalyst supports to the polyolefins industry for a variety of polyethylene and polypropylene process technologies. These types of catalysts are used for the manufacture of polyethylene and polypropylene resins used in products such as plastic film, high-performance plastic pipe, automobile parts, household appliances and household containers. Its Magnapore polymerization catalyst is used to produce high performance polyethylene in the slurry loop process for pipe and film applications. Its POLYTRAK polymerization catalyst is used in automobile bumpers and household appliances. The Company's DAVICAT standard and customized catalysts offer a range of chemical and physical properties based on its material science technology for supported catalysts, polystyrene, herbicide, neutriceuticals and on purpose olefins. The Company's RANEY nickel, cobalt and copper hydrogenation and dehydrogenation catalysts are used for the synthesis of organic compounds for the fibers, polyurethanes, engineered plastics, pharmaceuticals, sweeteners and petroleum industries.

Gr! ace Const! ruction Products

Grace Construction Products produces and sells specialty construction chemicals and specialty building materials. It includes construction chemicals including concrete admixtures and fibers used to modify the rheology, improve the durability and enhance various other properties of concrete, mortar, masonry and other cementitious construction materials; and additives used in cement processing to improve energy efficiency in manufacturing, enhance the characteristics of finished cement and improve ease of use, and Building materials used in both new construction and renovation/repair projects. The products protect buildings and civil engineering structures from water, vapor and air penetration. The portfolio includes waterproofing membranes for commercial and residential buildings, specialty grouts for use in waterproofing and soil stabilization applications, air and vapor barriers, and other products to solve the specialized needs of preventative and repair applications.

The Company competes with Albemarle, BASF, Criterion, Haldor Topsoe, Axens, PQ/INEOS, Evonik, UOP, Altana, Waters Corporation, Agilent Technologies, Thermo-Fisher and Sika.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Selena Maranjian]

  Tiger Global Management reduced its stake in lots of companies, including specialty chemical company W. R. Grace (NYSE: GRA  ) , which is getting close to emerging from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Its last earnings report featured revenue and earnings below the company's own expectations, but that didn't faze Goldman Sachs, which recently upgraded Grace stock to its Conviction Buy list, citing its cash flow and a strengthening construction market.

• [By Steve Sears]

  New stocks in what Goldman calls the “Hedge Fund VIP list,”�include Actavis (ACT), Baidu (BIDU), Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B), Crown Castle International (CCI), Entergy Louisiana (ELB), �Equinix (EQIX), Facebook (FB), Fleetcor Technologies (FLT), W.R. Grace (GRA), MetLife (MET), Macquarie Infrastructure (MIC), Micron (MU), Time Warner Cable (TWC), and Time Warner (TWX).

Best Chemical Companies To Invest In 2015: Givaudan SA (GIVN)

Givaudan SA is a Switzerland-based holding company engaged in the fragrance and flavor industry. The Company has two business divisions: Fragrances and Flavors. The Fragrances business segment comprises the manufacture and sale of fragrances into three global business units: Fine Fragrances, comprising signature fragrances and line extensions, Consumer Products, comprising fabric and personal care, hair and skin care, household and air care, as well as oral care, and Fragrance Ingredients. The Flavors business division comprises the manufacture and sale of flavors into four business units: Beverages, comprising flavors for soft drinks, fruit juices and instant beverages; Dairy, comprising ice cream, yoghurt, desserts and yellow fats; Savory, covering soups and sauces, among others; and Confectionery. The Company is also engaged in research and development activities, which comprises the development of a palette of perfumery raw materials, both synthetic and natural. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  Calling all cash flows
  When you are trying to buy the market's best stocks, it's worth checking up on your companies' free cash flow once a quarter or so, to see whether it bears any relationship to the net income in the headlines. That's what we do with this series. Today, we're checking in on Given Imaging (Nasdaq: GIVN  ) , whose recent revenue and earnings are plotted below.

Best Chemical Companies To Invest In 2015: Huntsman Corporation(HUN)

Huntsman Corporation engages in the manufacture and sale of differentiated organic and inorganic chemical products worldwide. The company offers polyurethane chemicals, including methyl diphenyl diisocyanate, propylene oxide, polyols, propylene glycol, thermoplastic polyurethane, aniline, and methyl tertiary-butyl ether products, which are used to produce rigid and flexible foams, as well as coatings, adhesives, sealants, and elastomers; and performance products, such as amines, carbonates, surfactants, linear alkyl benzene, maleic anhydride, performance chemicals, ethylene glycol, olefins, and technology licenses. It also provides advanced materials comprising epoxy resin compounds and formulations; cross-linking, matting agents, and curing agents; and epoxy, acrylic and polyurethane-based adhesives, and tooling resin formulations. In addition, Huntsman Corporation offers textile chemicals, dyes, and titanium dioxide. The company?s products are used in various applicatio ns, including adhesives, aerospace, automotive, construction products, durable and non-durable consumer products, electronics, medical, packaging, paints and coatings, power generation, refining, synthetic fiber, textile chemicals, and dye industries. Huntsman Corporation was founded in 1970 and is based in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jake L'Ecuyer]

  Leading and Lagging Sectors
  In trading on Thursday, basic materials shares were relative leaders, up on the day by about 1.20 percent. Among the leading sector stocks, gains came from Axiall (NYSE: AXLL), Materion (NYSE: MTRN), Huntsman (NYSE: HUN) and Joy Global (NYSE: JOY).

• [By Victor Selva] re promising results, and less volatile revenues during these last years. This, of course, has led to a high price to earnings ratio discouraging investors as we see later.

  Geographically Diversified

  On 2012, almost 50% of Eastman sales were generated in North America, while more than 25% were in Asia and 20% in Europe, Middle East and Africa. This diversification is to be taken into account since it guarantees long-term revenue, even if cigarette consumption decreases in some specific region (for instance, American sales declined �in recent years), which would stabilize acetate tow demands worldwide.

  Industrial Background and Gurus��Preference

  Eastman�� earnings per share growth was significantly higher than industry median (46.9% vs. 5.2%) but so was Huntsman��, at 46.5%. The critical difference between these two industry giants stands out by looking at their price to earnings: Eastman�� is below median (16.4 vs. 19.1) while Huntsman rose up to 130.1, thus entailing a significant price premium relative to industry peers��average.

  Although Ashland does have an inferior price to earnings ratio than Eastman�� (11.5), there�� a significant difference in their earnings per share growth: 27%, probably caused by a decline in revenue.

  This might have been one of the reasons that motivated investors David Dreman (Trades, Portfolio) and Joel Greenblatt (Trades, Portfolio) to significantly reduce their stake in Huntsman (both of them by more than 80% margin). In contrast, Leon Cooperman (Trades, Portfolio) and Scott Black (Trades, Portfolio), reinforced their positions in Eastman. Most notably, Ray Dalio (Trades, Portfolio) even sold out his Huntsman position and bought more than 50,000 Eastman shares and a smaller 5,600 share position at Ashland by the end of September.

  Although being volatile, Eastman appears to show a promising future since it�� both cheaper and faster growing than its rivals in che

• [By Michael Flannelly]

  Due to a number of tailwinds that should benefit Huntsman Corporation (HUN) over the next two years, analysts at Jefferies upgraded the chemical products manufacturer on Monday.

  The analysts upgraded HUN from “Hold” to “Buy” and now see shares reaching $26, up from the previous target of $20. This new price target suggests a 35% upside to the stock’s Friday closing price of $19.27.

  “Tailwinds into 2014-2015 (butane, new PO/MTBE JV, productivity, better FCF profile, EU footprint), recent relative performance and relative valuation support outperformance into 1H14 even with a neutral resolution on TiO2,” Jefferies analyst Laurence Alexander noted regarding Huntsman Corp.’s future performance.

  Huntsman Corporation shares were up 48 cents, or 2.49%, during pre-market trading on Monday. The stock is up 21.19% year-to-date.