Based on the aggregated intelligence of 180,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, retail broker E*TRADE Financial (Nasdaq: ETFC) has earned a respected four-star ranking.

With that in mind, let's take a closer look at E*TRADE's business and see what CAPS investors are saying about the stock right now.

E*TRADE facts

Headquarters (founded) New York (1982)
Market Cap $3.1 billion
Industry Investment brokerage
Trailing-12-Month Revenue $1.4 billion
Management CEO Steven Freiberg
CFO Matthew Audette
Return on Equity (average, past 3 years) (12.7%)
Cash/Debt $3.8 billion / $10.1 billion
Competitors Charles Schwab
FMR LLC
TD AMERITRADE

Sources: S&P Capital IQ and Motley Fool CAPS.

On CAPS, 94% of the 2,764 members who have rated E*TRADE believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward.  

A couple of months ago, one of those Fools, All-Star joryko, offered three good reasons to look into the stock:

First, in a bit of old news, they are still refocusing their business back to being a strong discount broker. It has proven to be profitable in the past and has reaffirmed this fact in the few quarters as well.

Second, [E*TRADE] has continued and is continuously running off its bad loan book, with the possibility of running it off entirely by 2014. ...

Third, they are doubling their sales team as they look to add more retirement accounts which could prove to be a huge boost to their EPS if it can be accomplished effectively. ...

With future account growth and the possibility of finishing off their loan book by 2014, I am optimistic that [E*TRADE] could make a return to the high teens in the not so distant future and higher yet in the long term.

If you want to retire rich, you need to put together the best portfolio you can. Owning exceptional stocks is a surefire way to secure your financial future. Of course, despite a strong four-star rating, E*TRADE may not be your top choice.

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