Based on the aggregated intelligence of 170,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, natural gas-focused explorer Ultra Petroleum (NYSE: UPL) has earned a coveted five-star ranking.

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

Ultra facts

Headquarters (Founded) Houston (1979)
Market Cap $7.2 billion
Industry Oil and gas exploration and production
Trailing-12-Month Revenue $955.2 million
Management

CEO Michael Watford (since 1999)

CFO Marshal Smith (since 2005)
Return on Equity (Average, Past 3 Years) 15.9
Cash/Debt $7.2 million / $1.3 billion
Competitors

EOG Resources (NYSE: EOG)

Cabot Oil & Gas (NYSE: COG)

Petrohawk Energy (NYSE: HK)


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

On CAPS, 97% of the 1,085 members who have rated Ultra believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward. These bulls include All-Star unicornhunter7, who is ranked in the top 5% of our community, and Ak66.

Just last week, unicornhunter7 tapped Ultra as a rather natural selection: "It may not happen this year, or next year, but natural gas prices will go up. I would rather buy the stock now and wait, rather than pay more later."

Ultra's status as one of North America's lowest-cost producers makes it a particularly attractive bet on higher natural gas prices. Thanks in large part to an enviable position in Wyoming's Green River Basin, Ultra's trailing-12-month operating margin (90.6%) easily tops that of rivals EOG (7.4%), Cabot (22.4%), and Petrohawk (34%), as well as other natural gas plays like Chesapeake Energy (NYSE: CHK) (17.5%) and Anadarko (NYSE: APC) (25.7%).

CAPS member Ak66 elaborates on Ultra's cost advantage:

Like everyone else, I can't see the future. This company has much more to the upside than the downside. It can out-wait more expensive producers, and when prices turn around it will be in a great position. I do not know the future, but I do know that it will require energy. Gas is one of the best options at the table for the next 30 years.

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