Top 5 Chemical Companies For 2014

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Syria is in the global spotlight this week after U.S. intelligence officials were able to confirm that chemical weapons were used there last week. This is leading many to believe that the United States will soon become involved in the situation and respond with a barrage of missile strikes to send a message to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. If those strikes do happen, it could start a contagion effect that could engulf the region in war.

Iran has already said that if a U.S.-led coalition attacks Syria then Israel could be the next victim of an attack. From there, things could get ugly very, very quickly. It's the worry of a contagion effect that has oil prices rising to a two year high of over $115 per barrel. Some have suggested that the price of oil could rise to over $150 a barrel, which would be above the all-time high it set at the dawn of the financial crisis. As it did then, an oil price spike of that magnitude would send shock waves through the still fragile, global economy.

Hot Sliver Companies For 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 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).

• [By Johanna Bennett]

  Dow Chemical recently agreed to sell its polypropylene licensing and catalysts business to fellow chemicals company W. R. Grace & Co. (GRA) for $500 million.

Top 5 Chemical Companies For 2014: NewMarket Corp (NEU)

NewMarket Corporation (NewMarket), incorporated in 2004, is a holding company, which is the parent company of Afton Chemical Corporation (Afton), Ethyl Corporation (Ethyl), NewMarket Services Corporation (NewMarket Services), and NewMarket Development Corporation (NewMarket Development). Each of the Company�� subsidiaries manages its own assets and liabilities. Afton encompasses the petroleum additives business, while Ethyl represents the sale and distribution of tetraethyl lead (TEL) in North America and certain petroleum additives manufacturing operations. NewMarket Development manages the property, which it owns in Richmond, Virginia. NewMarket Services provides administrative services to NewMarket, Afton, Ethyl, and NewMarket Development. NewMarket Services departmental expenses and other expenses are billed to NewMarket and each subsidiary pursuant to services agreements between the companies.

As a specialty chemicals company, Afton develops, manufactures, and blends formulated fuel and lubricant additive packages, and markets and sells these products globally. Afton is a lubricant and fuel additives companies globally. Lubricant and fuel additives are products for maintenance and reliable operation of all vehicles and machinery. Ethyl provides contract manufacturing services to Afton and to third parties and is one of the marketers of TEL in North America. NewMarket Development manages the property, which it owns on a site in Richmond, Virginia consisting of approximately 64 acres.

Petroleum Additives

Petroleum additives are used in lubricating oils and fuels to enhance their performance in machinery, vehicles, and other equipment. It manufactures chemical components, which are selected to perform specific functions and combine those chemicals with other components to form additive packages for use in specified end-user applications. The petroleum additives market is an international marketplace, with customers ranging from oil companies and refineries t! o original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and other specialty chemical companies. Lubricant additives are ingredients for lubricating oils. Lubricant additives are used in a range of vehicle and industrial applications, including engine oils, transmission fluids, gear oils, hydraulic oils, turbine oils, and in other application where metal-to-metal moving parts are utilized. Lubricant additives are organic and synthetic chemical components, which enhance wear protection, prevent deposits, and protect against the hostile operating environment of an engine, transmission, axle, hydraulic pump, or industrial machine.

Lubricants are used in every piece of operating machinery from heavy industrial equipment to vehicles. Lubricants provide a layer of protection between moving mechanical parts. Lubricants serve the functions, such as friction reduction, heat removal and containment of contaminants.

The Company offers a range of lubricant additive products, each of which is composed of component chemicals specially selected to perform desired functions. It manufactures the chemical components and blends these components to create formulated additives packages. Purchasers of lubricant additives tend to be oil companies, distributors, refineries, and compounders/blenders. The engine oils market�� primary customers include consumers, service dealers, and OEMs. Afton offers products, which enhances the performance of mineral, part-synthetic, and fully-synthetic engine oils.

The driveline additives submarket is consisted of additives designed for products, such as transmission fluids, gear oils, and off-road fluids. Transmission fluids serve as the power transmission and heat transfer medium in the area of the transmission. Gear oil additives lubricate gears, bearings, clutches, and bands in the gear-box and are used in vehicles, off-highway, hydraulic, and marine equipment. Other products in this area include hydraulic transmission fluids, universal tractor fluids, power ste! ering flu! ids, shock absorber fluids, gear oils and lubricants for machinery. These additives are sold to oil companies and often sold to vehicle OEMs for new vehicles. End-products are also sold to service dealers for aftermarket servicing (service-fill), as well as retailers and distributors.

The industrial additives submarket is consisted of additives designed for products for industrial applications, such as hydraulic fluids, grease, industrial gear fluids, industrial specialty applications, and metalworking additives. This submarket also shares in the 30% of the market not covered by engine oils. These products must conform to industry specifications, OEM requirements and/or application and operating environment demands. Industrial additives are sold to oil companies, service dealers for after-market servicing, and distributors.

The types of fuel additives the Company offers include gasoline performance additives, which clean and maintain fuel delivery systems, including fuel injectors and intake valves, in gasoline engine; diesel fuel performance additives, which perform similar cleaning functions in diesel engines; cetane improvers, which increase the cetane number in diesel fuel by reducing the delay between injection and ignition; stabilizers, which reduce or eliminate oxidation in fuel; corrosion inhibitors, which minimize the corrosive effects of combustion by-products and prevent rust; lubricity additives, which restore lubricating properties lost in the refining process; cold flow improvers, which improve the pumping and flow of diesel in cold temperatures, and octane enhancers. It offers a range of fuel additives globally and sells its products to fuel marketers and refiners, as well as independent terminals and other fuel blenders.

Real Estate Development

The real estate development segment represents the operations of Foundry Park I, LLC (Foundry Park I). The Company is exploring various development opportunities for other portions of the proper! ty it own! s, as the demand warrants.

All Other

The All other category includes the continuing operations of the TEL business (primarily sales of TEL in North America), as well as contract manufacturing performed by Ethyl. Ethyl manufacturing facilities include its Houston, Texas and Sarnia, Ontario, Canada plants. The Houston plant is engaged in petroleum additives manufacturing and produces both lubricant additives and fuel additives. The Sarnia plant is engaged in petroleum additives manufacturing and produces fuel additives. The All other category financial results include a service fee charged by Ethyl for its production services to Afton. Its remaining manufacturing facilities are part of Afton and produce both lubricant additives and fuel additives.

The Company competes with Berkshire Hathaway Inc., ExxonMobil Chemical, Royal Dutch Shell plc, Chevron Oronite Company LLC, BASF AG, Chevron Oronite Company LLC, The Lubrizol Corporation, Innospec, Inc., Eurenco and EPC - U.K.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Udovich]

  The biotech sector has been pretty exciting this year�with small cap biotech stocks Prana Biotechnology Limited (NASDAQ: PRAN) and TNI BioTech (OTCMKTS: TNIB) having recently produced noteworthy news for investors�while Acceleron Pharma, Inc (NASDAQ: XLRN), Ophthotech (NASDAQ: OPHT) and BIND Therapeutics (NASDAQ: BIND) have just�set term sheets for their upcoming IPOs. Just consider all of the following recent news:

  Surge in Biotech IPOs. Unquote.com has noted�a surge in biotech IPOs this year as there have been�almost 30 biotech IPOs since January - marking a 13-year high and sparking some concerns about a bubble. More specifically and according to the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA), there was just one venture capital-backed biotech IPO in the US in the first quarter of this year, but this was followed by a massive increase of 20 in�the second quarter and a�further six since July. There has also been a small uptick in�venture capital-backed European biotech companies going public (four) with�a listing on the Nasdaq appearing to be the most popular or rather the safest option. � New IPO Term Sheets. This month, a couple of small cap biotech companies announced their terms for upcoming IPOs, including 1)�Acceleron Pharma, Inc, a clinical stage biotech developing protein therapeutics for cancer and rare diseases, plans to raise $65 million by offering 4.7 million shares at a price range of $13 to $15; 2) Ophthotech, a clinical-stage biotech developing therapeutics for eye diseases, plans to raise $100 million by offering 5.7 million shares at a price range of $16 to $19; and 3) BIND Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotech developing a platform of targeted and programmable therapeutics, plans to raise $71 million by offering 4.7 million shares at a price range of $14 to $16. Biotechs Invest More on R&D. The 2013 BDO Biotech Briefing examined the most recent 10-K SEC filings of publicly traded companies listed on the Nasdaq Biotechnolog

Top 5 Chemical Companies For 2014: Balchem Corp (BCPC)

Balchem Corporation incorporated on Jan 30, 1967, is engaged in the development, manufacture and marketing of specialty performance ingredients and products for the food, nutritional, feed, pharmaceutical and medical sterilization industries. The Company operates in three segments: Specialty Products, Food, Pharma & Nutrition and Animal Nutrition & Health. The Company sells its products through its own sales force, independent distributors and sales agents. The Company operates five wholly owned domestic subsidiaries, such as BCP Ingredients, Inc., Aberco, Inc., Balchem BV, Balchem Trading BV and Balchem Italia Srl.

Food, Pharma & Nutrition

The Food, Pharma & Nutrition (FPN) segment provides microencapsulation solutions to a variety of applications in food, pharmaceutical and nutritional ingredients to enhance performance of nutritional fortification, processing, mixing, and packaging applications and shelf-life. Major product applications are baked goods, refrigerated and frozen dough systems, processed meats, seasoning blends, confections, and nutritional supplements. The Company also markets human grade choline nutrient products through this segment for wellness applications.

Specialty Products

The Company's Specialty Products segment operates in industry as ARC Specialty Products. Ethylene oxide, at the 100% level, is sold as a sterilant gas, primarily for use in the health care industry. It is used to sterilize a wide range of medical devices because of its versatility and effectiveness in treating hard or soft surfaces, composites, metals, tubing and different types of plastics. The Company's 100% ethylene oxide product is distributed in uniquely designed, recyclable, double-walled, stainless steel drums. Contract sterilizers, medical device manufacturers, and medical gas distributors are the Company's principal customers for this product. In addition, the Company also sells single use canisters with 100% ethylene oxide for uses in medical dev! ice sterilization.

The Company markets and sells propylene oxide as a fumigant to aids in the control of insects and microbiological spoilage and to reduce bacterial and mold contamination in shell and processed nut meats (except peanuts), processed spices, cacao beans, cocoa powder, raisins, figs and prunes. The Company distributes its propylene oxide product primarily in recyclable, single-walled, carbon steel cylinders The Company also sells propylene oxide to customers seeking smaller quantities and whose requirements include utilization in various chemical synthesis applications, to make paints more durable and for manufacturing specialty starches and textile coatings.

Animal Nutrition & Health

The Company's Animal Nutrition & Health (ANH) segment provides the animal nutrition and health markets with products derived from the Company's microencapsulation, chelation, and basic choline chloride technologies. Commercial sales of REASHURE Choline, a microencapsulated choline, NITROSHURETM, a microencapsulated urea, and NIASHURETM, the Company's microencapsulated niacin for dairy cows, boosts health and milk production in transition and lactating dairy cows, delivering nutrient supplements that survive the rumen and are biologically available, providing required nutritional levels. The Company's AMINOSHURE-L product, a rumen-protected lysine for use in dairy rations, gives nutritionists and dairy producers a precise and consistent source of rumen-protected lysine. The Company also markets chelated mineral supplements for uses in animal feed throughout the world. ANH also manufactures and supplies basic choline chloride, an essential nutrient for animal health, predominantly to the poultry and swine industries. The ANH segment also includes choline and certain derivatives manufactured and sold into various industrial applications, predominately as a component for hydraulic fracturing of shale natural gas wells, and methylamines which are a primary building block fo! r the man! ufacture of choline products and are also used in a wide range of industrial applications.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lisa Levin]

  Balchem (NASDAQ: BCPC) surged 13.56% to $59.19. The volume of Balchem shares traded 499% higher than normal. Balchem announced its plans to aquire SensoryEffects for $567 million.

Top 5 Chemical Companies For 2014: Symrise AG (SY1)

Symrise AG is a Germany-based fragrances and flavors manufacturer. The Company diversifies its activities into two business divisions: Flavor & Nutrition and Scent & Care. The Flavor & Nutrition business division produces flavors in liquid, powder, granulated and paste form, providing individual flavors as well as complete solutions which, apart from aroma, can contain additional functional raw materials, colorants or microencapsulated components. The products are divided into the beverages, savory, sweet and consumer health groups. The Scent & Care business division is divided into Fragrances, Oral Care, Life Essentials and Aroma Molecules. The Fragrances products are divided into the Fine Fragrances, Personal Care and Household groups. The Life Essentials are used in the cosmetic ingredients market, and include Botanicals and Cosmetic Ingredients, among others. The Aroma Molecules are used in the aroma chemicals market, and include Sensates (Menthols), among others. Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Inyoung Hwang]

  Symrise AG (SY1) jumped 5.7 percent to 32.95 euros. The fourth-largest maker of flavors and fragrances pledged to remain one of the most profitable companies in its industry amid higher demand for aroma molecules and fragrances. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, will be about 20 percent of sales in 2013 and will stay in the range of 19 percent to 22 percent in coming years, the company said today.