Tom Gardner stresses the importance of culture and purpose in his investments. As CEO of The Motley Fool, he plays a key role in defining both. Our purpose is "To help the world invest. Better." One way Fools can do that is by growing the love for investing. And by collaborating together, as an entire company, we can make it happen.
That's why, for the next two weeks, groups of Fools are competing in the first annual Foolympics. There will be feats of strength, such as the water balloon toss, and skill, like the rock-paper-scissors tournament. And to grow the love for investing, our motley band of brothers and sisters from the fictional country of Fooltopia want to share some great companies with you.
Max Keeler (process Fool)
Max subscribes to the Peter Lynch school of investing: Buy what you know. He says his $36 annual subscription to Pandora
Max owns shares of Pandora.
Patrick Martin (writing Fool)
Do you think Microsoft is a has-been, with a forward P/E of 8.8 and a 3% dividend yield? Patrick says think again. Windows Phone 7.5 and Windows 8 feel fresh and new compared to previous offerings, which should breathe some life into the company. And if the surveys that say Windows is the most wanted tablet OS are accurate, then Mr. Softy might actually challenge the iPad's gadget dominance. Patrick also says people shouldn't count Microsoft out of the cloud, either, with products like Azure, Office 365, and Xbox.
Matt Argersinger (membership Fool)
Arcos Dorados
Catherine Baab-Muguira (marketing Fool)
Catherine knows greatness when she sees it. And for Activision Blizzard
Catherine, Patrick, and David Gardner own shares of Activision. Matt holds options.
Adam Wiederman (marketing Fool)
While everyone is all ga-ga over the new iPhone, it's really Google's
David Gardner owns shares of Google.
Phil Biedronski (finance Fool)
Phil's a laid-back Fool from finance and knows where the money flows at Fool HQ. Apparently he's following the money trail in the bedding market, too. His pick is Tempur-Pedic
Alyce Lomax (writing Fool), Elizabeth Venegas (technology Fool), and Max Lancaster (technology Fool)
You may be familiar with Alyce's work on Fool.com and in her socially responsible Rising Star portfolio. Elizabeth and Max work behind the scenes at Fool HQ. Despite their different backgrounds, these two lovely ladies and Max like Whole Foods
Alyce, Elizabeth, and David Gardner are shareholders.
Dan Rittenhouse (writing Fool)
Dan pointed out that while he doesn't own shares yet, he does enjoy Boston Beer's
Matt owns shares of Boston Beer.
Great companies from a motley crew
Wow! What a list of great companies! And these Fools aren't all dyed-in-the-wool investors. They come from diverse backgrounds. However, one thing they do share is the same passion for great companies that Motley Fool co-founders Tom and David Gardner have fostered, and they wanted to pass it along to you to grow your love of investing.
Oh, I almost forgot
I can't leave with mentioning our team leader Eli Robbins, who works in technology, and another member of Fooltopia, Motley Fool co-founder David Gardner. It just so happens that Eli and David like the same company, one that is bringing cleaner-burning natural gas to the transportation industry. To learn its name, simply click here to enter your email address and we'll send you the video presentation, absolutely free.