Based on the aggregated intelligence of 170,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, gold and silver miner Minefinders (AMEX: MFN) has earned a respected four-star ranking.

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

Minefinders facts

Headquarters (founded) Vancouver, Canada (1975)
Market Cap $700.37 million
Industry Gold
Trailing-12-Month Revenue $89.51 million
Management

CEO Mark Bailey (since 1995)

CFO Gregory Smith (since 2006)
Return on Equity (average, past 3 years) (10.3%)
Cash/Debt $7.9 million / $76.3 million
Competitors

Barrick Gold (NYSE: ABX)

Goldcorp (NYSE: GG)

Pan American Silver (Nasdaq: PAAS)

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

On CAPS, 94% of the 304 members who have rated Minefinders believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward. These bulls include mypieceofpie and All-Star DarthMaul09, who is ranked in the top 2% of our community.

Late last year, mypieceofpie tapped Minefinders as an ignored opportunity: "This mining stock has underperformed the market for too long [without] getting a look. I believe gold is heading much higher thus so should Minefinders."

Shares of Minefinders are down 5% over the past year despite the soaring price of gold, and many Fools believe it's just too cheap to pass up. Currently, Minefinders even trades at a forward P/E (10.8) discount to gold plays like Barrick (18.8), Goldcorp (21.4), and Kinross Gold (NYSE: KGC) (21.1), as well as silvery stocks such as Silver Standard Resources (Nasdaq: SSRI) (44.3) and Pan American (18.5).

CAPS All-Star DarthMaul09 expands on Minefinders as particularly timely pick:

A speculative bet that when gold, silver and copper have another parabolic move up that interest in metal exploration will rise. Given the recent price moves for these metals I suspect that traders may be looking to gain a position in some of these exploration companies before the next wave up. A 10% to 20% short-term gain in early 2011 seems possible. And although long-term it may do OK, it probably won't do as well as a good recovering metals producer with a dividend, like [Yamana].

What do you think about Minefinders, or any other stock for that matter? 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, and on Motley Fool CAPS, thousands of investors are working every day to find them. CAPS is 100% free, so get started!