Headquartered in Zurich, ABB sells large-scale electrical circuitry, robotics and energy-monitoring and automation systems. It seems to land one multimillion-dollar infrastructure contract after another, including a recent $63 million deal to upgrade a power station in Saudi Arabia. Renewable-energy projects will need ABB's products and services, and its technology, including power-management sensors and load-balancing systems, has kept it ahead of most competitors, says Morningstar analyst Daniel Holland. ABB's shares have been cut by almost two-thirds, to 12, from their high last May, and now trade for nine times 2009 estimated earnings of $1.32 a share, a discount to the S&P 500's price/earnings multiple. Granted, last year's earnings were higher, at $1.74 a share, slightly exceeding expectations. Morningstar puts the company's fair value at 19 a share, some 62% above last week's close. Investors can collect a 46-cent annual dividend (for a current yield of 3.8%) while waiting for the global economy to jump-start. ABB recently shed some poorly performing assets in an efficiency drive of its own. The company boasts a strong balance sheet, and net cash (cash minus debt) of $5.4 billion, or $2.40 a share, Holland notes. It has used excess cash to boost its payout and buy in shares. Twelve-month return on equity of 28.39% is more than three times that of its peer group, which includes industrial outfits such as Emerson Electric (EMR) and Danaher (DHR).

Wind is a relatively low-cost and profitable revenue stream for the company, which expects total profit to grow by double-digits through 2010. FPL reported adjusted earnings of $3.84 a share last year, of which Next- Era contributed $2.04. The company could $4.07 this year, and $4.54 in 2010. Although its regulated utility has experienced reduced demand, FPL is better-positioned than most. Moreover, Florida's relatively favorable regulatory environment encourages additional investments in capacity that could boost the utility's earnings. FPL emits less carbon than most other utilities, and will benefit from a "greenhouse gas-constrained regulatory environment," says Ken Stern, a San Diego money manager. But the company stands to profit most from national initiatives to expand wind-energy generation and bolster transmission facilities. "Transmission development had double-digit growth prospects before the credit crunch, and now, favorable legislation is coming in terms of taxes and the fast-tracking of capex [capital-spending] opportunities," says Van Eck's Mitby. Barrons.com penned a positive piece on FPL late last year when the shares were 49.12, near the midpoint of their 52-week range. FPL recently closed around 46, and has a 4.14% dividend yield. Even a modest improvement in the economy could jolt the stock, lifting it into the mid-50s.

The growing use of sustainable energy, mandated in part by the government, could give the company's earnings, and its shares, a big push. Utilities and industrial companies long have bought electricity produced by the methane gas released from Waste Management's landfills. The company's waste-to-energy incinerators, strategically placed around the country, burn about a fourth of the 30 million tons of trash incinerated in the U.S. each year. Each ton of garbage burned replaces about a ton of coal, and reduces carbon emissions significantly. Waste Management plans to double its overall energy-generation capacity by 2020, producing enough energy to power two million homes. In February it was tapped by two Maryland counties to build an EfW plant that could meet those counties' total electricity and disposal needs. The project is expected to replace the burning of 130,000 tons of coal, and lower greenhouse-gas emissions by 500,000 tons a year. EfW is widely practiced in Europe and China, which hopes to produce 30% of its energy by such means by 2020, says Meeks. Waste Management also recycles electronic equipment and medical waste, both growing revenue streams, and acts as a conservation consultant to non-U.S. recyclers. If there is green in garbage, the company is going to find it -- and convert it to greenbacks for shareholders.

Jacobs' recent contract wins include a five-year, $17.5 million commission to manage three transportation programs in the San Francisco Bay area, and a $200 million deal to build and manage a water-reclamation project for Pima County, Ariz. That is in addition to contracts for work on oil and gas facilities, prisons, petrochemical plants and transportation systems. About 80% of its wins are from repeat customers, and 90% include cost-reimbursement, Oey notes. Jacobs' shares hit the skids last year, losing about 60% of their value; they now trade around 34. Morningstar puts the company's fair value in the low-60s, but it may be closer to the mid-40s so long as the economy and financial markets continue to quake. Stimulus spending on infrastructure projects, transportation systems and facilities designed to use less energy more efficiently likely will help Jacobs maintain its balance, and continue delivering upbeat earnings news.

The company recently launched a new venture: hybrid hydraulic/electric alternatives for fleet-vehicle propulsion, including one system built with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Designs vary, but basically capture energy from braking and other subsystems to augment or replace the traditional diesel engine. Particularly promising for city buses, delivery trucks and other vehicles that start and stop frequently, the EPA estimates such powertrains could produce fuel savings of 20% to 40%, and cut carbon emissions by as much as 40%. So far, those vehicles are limited to pilot programs, but the "pilots" include big customers like United Parcel Service, Federal Express and Wal-Mart, as well as school buses used as far away Melbourne, Australia and Guangzhou, China. Eaton has many competitors, but unlike others that dream of replacing the combustion engine, it has been an automotive-technology leader since 1911. With 2008 sales of $15.4 billion, the Cleveland-based company has the design, manufacturing and financing in place to scale its ideas. Its truck group alone sells $2.3 billion of transmission and hybrid-power and exhaust systems for trucks, buses and agricultural equipment. Eaton knows its customers, and the costs and challenges of operating in 150 different countries. But its strengths also raise concerns. "I like Eaton, but I'm worried about its earnings [expectations] earnings being overly optimistic due to its heavy exposure to the auto industry," says Ken Stern, the San Diego investment manager. Morningstar analyst John Kearney is more upbeat, noting an aggressive acquisition strategy has diversified the company's revenue and profits. Draconian cost-cutting measures also have helped. Eaton earned $6.83 a share in 2008. This year, management is guiding profit expectations downward to between $4.20 and $5.20 a share; the wide range reflects economic uncertainties. Eaton has paid a dividend for 85 years, and yields 5.41%. Its current payout, $2 a share, must have been of some comfort to investors, whose shares have lost about half their value in the past year, and now trade around 36. At least one savvy holder used the opportunity to snap up more stock: Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRKA) upped its stake in Eaton in the fourth quarter to 3.2 million shares, from 2.9 million.

To be sure, more public and private spending will benefit alternative-energy giants like General Electric (GE), the biggest U.S. supplier of wind turbines, and United Technologies (UTX), a leader in making buildings more energy-efficient. Johnson Controls (JCI), Honeywell (HON), AES (AES) and others that make sensors and systems needed to optimize HVAC (heating, ventilating and air-conditioning) also belong on any list of likely green winners.

To be sure, more public and private spending will benefit alternative-energy giants like General Electric (GE), the biggest U.S. supplier of wind turbines, and United Technologies (UTX), a leader in making buildings more energy-efficient. Johnson Controls (JCI), Honeywell (HON), AES (AES) and others that make sensors and systems needed to optimize HVAC (heating, ventilating and air-conditioning) also belong on any list of likely green winners.

To be sure, more public and private spending will benefit alternative-energy giants like General Electric (GE), the biggest U.S. supplier of wind turbines, and United Technologies (UTX), a leader in making buildings more energy-efficient. Johnson Controls (JCI), Honeywell (HON), AES (AES) and others that make sensors and systems needed to optimize HVAC (heating, ventilating and air-conditioning) also belong on any list of likely green winners.