Instead of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, we have Cytec (NYSE:CYT) and the story of one really interesting operating segment and three dwarves. For while the engineered materials business is looking pretty strong, there are valid questions about the other business units.

Reading this quarter's report is a nightmare of one-time items, charges, and add-backs. Suffice it to say, revenue growth was all right (in the high single digits on an organic basis), and earnings were basically as expected, but still down on a per-share basis.

The specialty chemical and building block chemicals businesses are having a rough go of it right now. There are pockets of strength, as in the mining chemicals segment, but overall the company is having some difficulty passing on higher material costs through price increases. In the surface specialties business, conditions are better, but the story here is mostly about improving efficiency and internal operations.

The one segment that does look strong is the engineered materials business. The same sorts of business trends from customers like Boeing (NYSE:BA) and Airbus that are helping Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) are also helping Cytec. The problem, though, is that there's still meaningful vulnerability to input costs and production delays. Moreover, this one segment on its own is quite a bit smaller than the rest combined, so there's only so much it can help.

In its favor, the company was cash flow-positive this quarter (as opposed to a year ago). It's also true that this is a broad-based company with footholds in attractive markets like aerospace, water treatment, and mining/energy. It's also not that dramatically overpriced relative to its peers, particularly if management can improve that acquired business and maximize the opportunity in engineered materials.

Still, I've about had my fill of big cyclical companies with significant input price risk and minimal pricing power. These are very tough stocks to do well with over the long haul, and I'd advise Fools to look elsewhere for long-term value.

See what you can create out of these Foolish building blocks:

Fool contributor Stephen Simpson has no financial interest in any stocks mentioned (that means he's neither long nor short the shares).