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4-Star Stocks Poised to Pop: Express Scripts

Based on the aggregated intelligence of 180,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts (Nasdaq: ESRX  ) has earned a respected four-star ranking.

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

Express Scripts facts

Headquarters (Founded)

St. Louis (1986)

Market Cap

$28 billion

Industry

Health-care plans

Trailing-12-Month Revenue

$45 billion

Management

Chairman/CEO George Paz
CFO Jeffrey Hall

Return on Equity (Average, Past 3 Years)

40.3%

Cash/Debt

$291 million / $4.1 billion

Competitors

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH  )
WellPoint (NYSE: WLP  )

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

On CAPS, 94% of the 711 members who have rated Express Scripts believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward. These bulls include All-Star BoiseKen, who is ranked in the top 6% of our community, and troym72.

Just last week, BoiseKen applauded Express Scripts' recent purchase: "They might get knocked down shortterm from the [MedCo Health (NYSE: MHS  ) ] deal, but ... I think they paid a great price for a longterm boost. Generic drugs going off patent along with MHS' individualized medicine and depth of skill make this a winner."

Express Scripts even boasts a solid three-year average return on capital of 18.9%. That's higher than that of industry peers like UnitedHealth (13.1%) and WellPoint (8.7%).

CAPS member troym72 elaborates on the bull case:

Express Scripts is in a great position to take advantage of the aging population which will is in greater and greater need for regular maintenance medications, which falls right into their mail-order strategy. Increasing Revenue and EPS over the last 5 years shows that Express Scripts has the leadership and direction to keep growing for years to come.

What do you think about Express Scripts -- 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!

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Fool contributor Brian Pacampara owns no position in any of the companies mentioned. Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of MedcoHealth and UnitedHealth, as well as creating a diagonal call position in UnitedHealth. The Fool owns shares of Medco and UnitedHealth. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Fool's disclosure policy always gets a perfect score.


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Related Tickers

5/25/2012 4:00 PM
ESRX $52.63 Up +0.96 +1.86%
Express Scripts, I… CAPS Rating: ****
WLP $67.90 Up +0.08 +0.12%
WellPoint, Inc. CAPS Rating: *****
UNH $56.12 Down -0.10 -0.18%
UnitedHealth Group CAPS Rating: *****
MHS $70.30 Down +0.00 +0.00%
Medco Health Solut… CAPS Rating: *****

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