Clearly, the oil price decline has hit the industry extremely hard and has hurt the top and bottom lines of nearly all of its incumbents. However, valuations have also fallen and for investors considering buying shares in energy companies, the oil space remains a very appealing place to buy shares on a relative basis.

For example, Tullow Oil (LSE: TLW) is seeking to adapt its business model to a lower oil price environment through changes such as making cost savings. In fact, it is seeking to generate around $500m in cost savings over the next three years and, furthermore, is becoming increasingly disciplined with regard to its capital allocation. It is also seeking to increase its total production level and, encouragingly, plan for a return to higher price oil by building up a portfolio of higher margin oil prospects through highly focused exploration activities.

In terms of its valuation, Tullow Oil has huge appeal. It offers a very wide margin of safety, as demonstrated by its price to earnings growth (PEG) ratio of just 0.1. And, with a greater focus on producing strong cash flows from its West Africa projects, Tullow Oil appears to have the financial strength to see through the current dip in oil prices and emerge a more efficient and sound business for the long term.

Similarly, Amec Foster Wheeler (LSE: AMFW) also has huge investment appeal, with its integration progressing smoothly and being on-track to deliver $125m in cost savings. Its multi-market model provides diversity and is a key reason why net profit declined by just 8% last year while many oil-focused companies saw much larger slumps in their financial performance.

Looking ahead to next year, Amec Foster Wheeler is due to return to bottom line growth, thereby making its price to earnings (P/E) ratio of 11.1 seem good value for money. This, alongside a well-covered yield of 5.4%, makes it an excellent long term buy – especially for investors seeking a relatively low-risk exposure to the oil industry.

Meanwhile, alkaline fuel cell producer AFC Energy (LSE: AFC) continues to make excellent progress with its 2015 Power-Up programme. Earlier this week it reached milestone ten of eleven when it successfully commenced temporary operation of an entire tier of eight fuel cell cartridges on its KORE system, where it achieved a maximum output of over 40kWe.

Looking ahead, milestone 11 is due to be reached before the end of the year and will involve testing an output of 240kWe. Should this be accomplished, AFC Energy can move forward with its strategic goal of developing several projects in the international power market in 2016 and beyond. As such, now could be an excellent time to buy a slice of the business which, while relatively risky, continues to have long term growth potential within the clean energy space.

The post 3 Hot Energy Stocks: AFC Energy plc, Tullow Oil plc And Amec Foster Wheeler PLC appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Peter Stephens owns shares of AFC Energy. The Motley Fool UK has recommended Tullow Oil. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

Clearly, this has disappointed many investors and, as such, it represents a superb buying opportunity for other investors. That’s because, while a fall in profitability is never welcome, it is only for a very short period of time (six months) and, encouragingly, the company’s management team expects growth for the full year to be in-line with previous guidance. This would equate to growth of 21% versus 2014, with further growth of 12% being pencilled in for next year.

And, with Judges Scientific continuing to make acquisitions (such as the recent purchase of Armfield), it could bolster its bottom line considerably over the medium to long term. Moreover, with a price to earnings growth (PEG) ratio of just 1.3, it appears to offer excellent value for money at the present time.

Similarly, online fashion retailer Boohoo.Com (LSE: BOO) also trades on a very appealing valuation. It has a PEG ratio of just 0.8, with its earnings set to rise by 42% this year and by a further 25% next year. As a result, investor sentiment could be positively catalysed and help to reverse the decline in the company’s share price that has seen it slump by 29% since the turn of the year.

Of course, it could be argued that Boohoo.Com is operating in an extremely competitive industry where margins could come under pressure. Certainly, the twentysomething and teenage fashion space has a large number of incumbents and is constantly evolving, which means that new entrants can quickly gain market share while existing operators are left behind. However, Boohoo.Com’s valuation appears to adequately take that risk into account and, with expansion across the globe being a key focus for the company over the medium term, now seems to be a great time to buy a slice of it.

It’s a similar story for alkaline battery producer AFC Energy (LSE: AFC). Its share price rise may put off a number of potential investors, with a gain of 468% since the turn of the year arguably indicating that it is due a pullback. And, while AFC Energy is not risk-free, it appears to have strong forward momentum, with a number of potential projects in the pipeline and the business moving into profitability in its interim results for the first time.

Importantly, AFC Energy is operating within a space that is set to grow significantly in future. Although the lower oil price may slow the pace of change away from fossil fuels and towards greener options, the use of fuel cells is likely to increase significantly in the next decade, which makes now a great time to buy a profitable business, such as AFC Energy, which operates in this arena.

The post 3 Of My Favourite Small Caps: Judges Scientific PLC, AFC Energy plc & Boohoo.Com PLC appeared first on The Twelfth Magpie.

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Peter Stephens owns shares of AFC Energy and Judges Scientific. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.