In the spirit of World Cup competition, we're holding our own tournament in search of the Better Stock Today. We're pitting 32 companies against each other, and you, the reader, will determine the winner.
Visa takes on Tesla Motors for this round-robin matchup in our search for the better stock today.
Financials analyst David Hanson thinks Visa (V -0.59%) should advance to the next round because of the business's importance to the global economy. During the recent economic sanctions battle between the U.S. and Russia, the potential loss of Visa's network caused the Kremlin to work out a deal with the payment processor. In addition to its crucial function, the company sports some of the most impressive margins across any business. With a management team committed to returning capital to shareholders, investors would hard-pressed to find a better long-term buy than Visa.
Motley Fool Supernova analyst Matt Argersinger thinks Tesla Motors (TSLA -1.92%) deserves to win this match for one simple reason: Elon Musk. The CEO and co-founder is the brains behind many technology and business success stories, most notably PayPal. Musk is also the CEO and chief designer of SpaceX and the chairman of SolarCity.
At Tesla, Musk not only created the first commercially successful all-electric vehicle in the Model S, but also one of the automotive industry's highest-rated vehicles ever. And as if being a technological genius and a proven value creator weren't enough, Musk also happens to be Tesla's largest individual shareholder, owning 23% of outstanding shares worth roughly $6 billion.
Some of the greatest business and investment success stories of our time are derived from visionary founders and CEOs with large personal stakes in their own company. That reason alone should be enough to make Tesla a market-beating investment from today's price.
Vote here to determine the winner of this match and sound off in the comments. Check back to Fool.com to see who advances in the tournament.
