Investopedia: At The Right Price, Albemarle Would Be A Great Idea

There's a big difference between commodity chemical companies and specialty chemical companies - both can make you money, but companies with more of a commodity orientation have to be sold more nimbly. That's not to say, however, that investors can just buy a company like Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) whenever they may like. While this is a very interesting and well-run chemical company, today's valuation doesn't offer much discount despite multiple challenges to the business.

Please read more here:
http://www.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2012/At-The-Right-Price-Albemarle-Would-Be-A-Great-Idea-ALB-CHMT-GRA-RDS-A-AAPL1002.aspx

Industrial-Strength Performance At RPM

Specialty chemicals is one of those catch-all categories that seems convenient but is actually pretty worthless in practice. Cytec (NYSE:CYT), WR Grace (NYSE:GRA), Solutia (NYSE:SOA) and RPM International (NYSE:RPM) all carry this label, but the similarities are few and far between apart from a general exposure to rising input costs. Nevertheless, looking a little deeper sometimes pays off, for while RPM needs a better housing market to really do well, the stock could be an attractive dividend-plus-capital-gains story for patient investors. 

The Quarter That Was
RPM's fiscal first quarter results require a little bit of explanation. As reported, sales were down about 2%, but this is a case where "as reported" is not very accurate. The company elected to deconsolidate its Specialty Products Holding Company subsidiary and allow it to go into bankruptcy to help resolve asbestos liabilities. Not only does that take away some units like Day-Glo and Dryvit, but it also makes historical comparisons misleading. 


Click below for the full article:
http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2010/Industrial-Strength-Performance-At-RPM-RPM-KRA-SHW-FOE-CYT-SOA-GRA1008.aspx

Can Investors Capture Gains In Carbon Capture?

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) seems to be an inevitable emerging technology over the next few decades. CCS holds the promise of cutting CO2 emissions from power plants by up to 80-90%, while not imposing a crippling cost burden on energy producers and customers. As increased legislation aimed at controlling green house gas emissions seems like a done deal in the years to come, investors should look to see how they might position themselves to profit. 

Look to the Oil FieldsOne of the early adopters of CO2 capture and storage has been the oil and gas industry. Companies including Statoil (NYSE:STO), Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMP), and Denbury Resources (NYSE:DNR) have been early movers in this field, which involves injecting CO2 far beneath the ground to stimulate better oil and gas production. Kinder Morgan operates CO2 pipelines and reported a few years ago that in the Permian Basin and Mississippi nearly 11 trillion cubic feet of CO2 had been used to generate and incremental 1.2 billion barrels of oil that might otherwise have remained in place.

For the complete column, please go to:
http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2010/Can-Investors-Capture-Gains-In-Carbon-Capture-STO-KMP-DNR-ALB-GRA0616.aspx