The Iran nuclear crisis and rising global demand have spiked gas prices to over $4 a gallon, and both sides of Congress are exchanging words over the sensitive economic issue.

"We are not going to be able to just drill our way out of the problem of high gas prices," Obama told workers at a Daimler Trucks North America factory ... Anyone who tells you otherwise either doesn't know what they are talking about, or they are not telling you the truth" (via Reuters).

According to Reuters, "Obama's long-term fixes include raising fuel economy standards and providing incentives for Americans to make and buy products that run on alternative energy," such as increasing the tax incentives on electric cars and alternative-fuel trucks from $7,500 to $10,000.

Business section: Investing ideas
Do you think the clean energy industry will benefit in the coming years as oil becomes more and more unaffordable? For a closer look at the industry, we ran a screen on clean energy companies (those that use or produce clean sources of energy) for those that company insiders expect to outperform.

We screened for those with the highest levels of insider purchases over the last six months, indicating insiders such as members of the board and upper management expect these names to outperform.

Do you think they're poised to outperform? (Click here to access free, interactive tools to analyze these ideas.)

1. American Superconductor (Nasdaq: AMSC): Provides wind turbine designs and electrical control systems primarily in North America, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific. Over the last six months, insiders were net buyers of 938,000 shares, which represents about 2.41% of the company's 38.85M share float.

2. FuelCell Energy (Nasdaq: FCEL): Engages in the development, manufacturing, and sale of high temperature fuel cells for clean electric power generation primarily in South Korea, the United States, Germany, Canada, and Japan. Over the last six months, insiders were net buyers of 180,000 shares, which represents about 0.14% of the company's 125.50M share float.

3. Federal Signal (NYSE: FSS): Designs and manufactures a suite of products and integrated solutions for municipal, governmental, industrial, and commercial customers worldwide. Over the last six months, insiders were net buyers of 79,500 shares, which represents about 0.13% of the company's 60.05M share float.

4. Republic Services (NYSE: RSG): Provides nonhazardous solid waste collection, transfer, and disposal services in the United States. Over the last six months, insiders were net buyers of 7,694,475 shares, which represents about 2.53% of the company's 303.85M share float.

5. MEMC Electronic Materials (NYSE: WFR): Engages in the development, manufacture, and sale of silicon wafers for the semiconductor industry worldwide. Over the last six months, insiders were net buyers of 355,195 shares, which represents about 0.15% of the company's 230.07M share float.

Interactive Chart: Press Play to compare changes in analyst ratings over the last two years for the stocks mentioned above. Analyst ratings sourced from Zacks Investment Research.


Kapitall's Alexander Crawford does not own any of the shares mentioned above. Insider data sourced from Yahoo! Finance.