Over the past 10 years, the S&P 500 has posted lackluster 37% cumulative returns. But some big winners during this period, like Deere (NYSE:DE), up 364%, and Chevron (NYSE:CVX), up 209%, have kept the S&P afloat, if only barely.

So who will be the next big winner from the S&P 500? Based on the ratings from our 115,000-member community at Motley Fool CAPS, we've highlighted the five highest-rated S&P 500 component stocks. Why does this matter? We've found that four- and five-star rated stocks outperformed the market as a group by 7 and 12 percentage points, respectively, from November 2006 to July 2008.

Company

CAPS Rating

Industry

Research

Genuine Parts (NYSE:GPC)

*****

Auto parts wholesale

GPC

Noble (NYSE:NE)

*****

Oil and gas drilling and exploration

NE

Emerson Electric (NYSE:EMR)

*****

Industrial equipment and components

EMR

Eaton (NYSE:ETN)

*****

Industrial electrical equipment

ETN

Ingersoll-Rand (NYSE:IR)

*****

Diversified machinery

IR

*Source: Motley Fool CAPS, as of Aug. 22, 2008.

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