Based on the aggregated intelligence of 140,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, silicon-wafer maker MEMC Electronic Materials (NYSE: WFR ) has earned a coveted five-star ranking.
With that in mind, let's take a closer look at MEMC's business and see what CAPS investors are saying about the stock right now.
MEMC facts
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Headquarters (Founded)
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St. Peters, Miss. (1984)
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Market Cap
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$2.8 billion
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Industry
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Semiconductor equipment
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Trailing-12-Month Revenue
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$1.23 billion
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Management
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CEO Ahmad Chatila (since March 2009)
CFO Kenneth Hannah (since April 2006)
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Return on Equity (Average, Past 3 Years)
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30.6%
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Cash / Debt
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$792.2 million / $28.9 million
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Competitors
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ReneSola (NYSE: SOL )
LDK Solar (NYSE: LDK )
SunPower (Nasdaq: SPWRA )
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CAPS Members Bullish on WFR Also Bullish on
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General Electric (NYSE: GE )
Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL )
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CAPS Members Bearish on WFR Also Bearish on
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Elan (NYSE: ELN )
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Sources: Capital IQ (a division of Standard & Poor's) and Motley Fool CAPS.
On CAPS, 97% of the 1,918 members who have rated MEMC believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward. These bulls include robertshrestha and All-Star TSIF, who is ranked in the top 5% of our community.
Just yesterday, robertshrestha touched on MEMC's particularly bright balance sheet: "Rock-solid financial position. War chest of cash and little debt. Big solar trends in its favor should keep the free cash flowing for years."
In a pitch from last Friday, TSIF focused on the sunny side of MEMC's recent slide. Here's an excerpt:
MEMC recently announced a loss that surprised analysts. At the same time it announced buying a privately held solar panel installer SunEdison … Since MEMC has a good supply of cash, I consider the SunEdison deal to be positive. As far as the loss this quarter, again due to their cash position and the loss being partially caused by a shift in manufacturing locations and the associated costs and that solar power is "catching" on, albeit more slowly than expected a few years ago, that MEMC will bounce back. This pick may take a while to mature, but I like the 10% discount I received from the market today.
What do you think about MEMC, or any other stock for that matter? Make your voice heard on Motley Fool CAPS today. The CAPS community is waiting to hear your opinions. CAPS is 100% free, so get started!
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