Based on the aggregated intelligence of 170,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, geothermal power plant operator Ormat Technologies (NYSE: ORA) has earned a coveted five-star ranking.

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

Ormat facts

Headquarters (Founded)

Reno, Nev. (1965)

Market Cap

$1.34 billion

Industry

Independent power producers and energy traders

Trailing-12-Month Revenue

$377.8 million

Management

CEO Yehudit Bronicki (since 1991)

CFO Joseph Tenne (since 2005)

Return on Equity (Average, Past 3 Years)

6.3%

Cash/Debt

$49.2 million / $720.8 million

Competitors

AES (NYSE: AES)

General Electric (NYSE: GE)

NRG Energy (NYSE: NRG)


Sources: Capital IQ (a division of Standard & Poor's) and Motley Fool CAPS.

On CAPS, 95% of the 160 members who have rated Ormat believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward. These bulls include KMillionaire and JollyViking.

Only two days ago, KMillionaire tapped Ormat as a particularly powerful pick:

This is a company I would hitch my wagon to, whether I knew anything about the share price or not. Also, the utilities sector was pretty mellow during 2010 ... I don't expect it to stay mellow for much longer. When utilities pick up speed again, Ormat will lead the charge.

To be sure, Ormat trades at a clear P/E (28.3) premium to rival power companies such as AES (5.9) and NRG Energy (9.6), as well as industrial gorilla foes like GE (15.9, Siemens (NYSE: SI) (21.1), and United Technologies (NYSE: UTX) (17.3).

Of course, with as many positives as CAPS member JollyViking notes, Ormat might be worth paying up for :

[T]he long-term prospects for this company are quite good, given its status as industry leader and its profitability. The company has produced over 750 geothermal power plants, and is also diversified into power generated from recaptured industrial heat. Also, given its proven track record, one could speculate that a company with an interest in expanding into geothermal power generation might see it as an attractive takeover target.

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