High-Priced Stocks Worth Every Penny

Penny stocks are one way to double your money, though it's fraught with risk, but there are equally shiny opportunities trading at the other end of the price spectrum, too. I call 'em "three-digit stocks," yet if they're anything like Berkshire Hathaway they can trade in the four-, five-, and six-digit range, too.

A penny stock might not be a good buy simply because it's cheap, and a three-digit stock shouldn't scare you away just because it carries a hefty price tag. Handsome is as handsome does. Let's check in with the Motley Fool CAPS community to see which of the high-priced stocks below earn the greatest confidence from our investor-intelligence database:

Source: Capital IQ, a division of Standard & Poor's; Motley Fool CAPS. TTM = trailing 12 months.

But just because these stocks are purring is no reason to jump into them blindly. Catching a tiger by the tail -- or a knife falling from on high -- can end up leaving you scratched and bleeding. That's why we recommend you use this list as a launching pad for your own research and analysis.

Highfalutin'
There was a lot of fanfare a year ago when consumer electronics chain Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) announced it would start selling electric vehicles like scooters, bicycles, motorcycles, and even Segways, and it followed up last spring with an announcement that electric cars would be a part of its inventory, too. According to Best Buy, "Electric cars are basically computers on wheels."

Now we see that the place you go to buy your big-screen TVs and stereo equipment is teaming up with both Eaton and Mitsubishi to bring those electric cars to life. It's going to provide the geeks to do consumer site assessments while Mitsubishi builds the cars and Eaton provides the charging stations available for purchase at Best Buy.

We've seen this dynamic before, as Clean Energy Fuels (Nasdaq: CLNE) builds out fueling stations across the country to power natural gas-fueled vehicles. Without the means of effectively recharging or refueling a vehicle, alternative energy cars won't go mainstream, whatever excitement Tesla (Nasdaq: TSLA) or General Motors' Volt brings to the table. Eaton's electrical division provides half of Clean Energy Fuels' revenues already, and could generate more top-line support if these consumer-oriented stations catch on.

Eaton's energy efficiency attracted CAPS member coopecb1, who isn't alone because 96% of CAPS members rating the diversified automotive components maker also see it outperforming the broad market averages. You can let us know what you think in the comments section below or on the Eaton CAPS page.

Bringing home the bacon
Although sales of commodities like wheat, corn, soybean meal, and rice make up more than 40% of Seaboard's revenues, it is pork (at less than one-third of sales) that gave it the bulk of its profits over the past nine months. With its purchase of Butterball from Smithfield Foods, it will also talk turkey, too.

Seaboard, Smithfield, and even Tyson (NYSE: TSN) -- though the company is best-known for its chicken, the pork segment provided even higher profits -- have all enjoyed rising pork prices this year. That helps explain why Seaboard's shares have risen more than 50% over the past 12 months. Not necessarily an easy achievement when your stock is already more than $1,000 a share.

Because Seaboard trades at just 12 times trailing earnings, CAPS All-Star whomonkyoulus thinks it offers an even better discount.

This will be a great company to own. Current assets minus current liabilities = 1 billion. They are trading for 2.3 billion. They are making 250 million a year. One could argue that the P/E is now 5.

To keep an eye on Seaboard, add it to your watchlist to have all the Foolish news and analysis compiled for you in a single place.

Triple-digit titans
Following the devastating hurricanes in 2005, insurance companies like White Mountains Insurance and United Fire & Casualty were brought to the brink as claims swamped their ability to pay. While that had some thinking the industry would be ruined, it actually paved the way for higher premiums. Even in 2010, one of the most active years for hurricanes on records, though none of them made landfall in the U.S., the insurance market is soft. Competition and a still-difficult economy have kept premiums stable.

As a result, investors are fairly sanguine about insurers, and many, including White Mountains, are trading for less than their book value. Because 95% of those in CAPS rating the insurer see it turning in market-beating performances, it would suggest they think White Mountains still has the wind at its back.

You can tell us what you think on the White Mountains CAPS page.

Count to 10
These three-digit stocks might be on their way to even higher valuations. That's why it pays to start your own research in Motley Fool CAPS. Read a company's financial reports, scrutinize key data and charts, and examine the comments your fellow investors have made, all from a stock's CAPS page.