Based on the aggregated intelligence of 180,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, premium spirits specialist Beam (NYSE: BEAM ) has earned a respected four-star ranking.
With that in mind, let's take a closer look at Beam's business and see what CAPS investors are saying about the stock right now.
Beam facts
| Headquarters (founded) |
Deerfield, Ill. (1904) |
| Market Cap |
$7.47 billion |
| Industry |
Distillers and vintners |
| Trailing-12-Month Revenue |
$6.74 billion |
| Management |
CEO Matthew Shattock
CFO Robert Probst |
| Return on Equity (average, past 3 years) |
5.7% |
| Cash/Debt |
$290.8 million / $3.87 billion |
| Dividend Yield |
1.6% |
| Competitors |
Brown Forman (NYSE: BF-B )
Constellation Brands (NYSE: STZ )
Diageo (NYSE: DEO ) |
Source: S&P Capital IQ and Motley Fool CAPS.
On CAPS, 95% of the 38 members who have rated Beam believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward. These bulls include AwesomeOpossum and All-Star Eerkes, who is ranked in the top 5% of our community.
Just last week, AwesomeOpossum tapped Beam as a particularly stable pick:
No matter what the economy does, people will consume liquor. If it goes well, they'll drink to celebrate. If it does poorly, they will drink to forget. Through all of it, Beam will make sure there's plenty of booze to go around.
Over the next five years, in fact, Beam is expected to grow its bottom line at a solid rate of 13% annually. That's slightly faster than that of competitors such as Brown Forman (9.8%), Constellation Brands (10.8%), and Diageo (10.7%).
CAPS member Eerkes elaborates on the bull case:
[I]f BEAM can bring its operational performance in line with [Diageo], it is worth about $55-$60 / share.
I do think this company has a better portfolio of brands as compared to its market size than [Diageo], and should be able to attain better growth through brand investment, increasing the value of this company, although I am not going to attempt to quantify it.
Also BEAM has lots of potential overseas.
I am not the only one who sees this, expect the share price to rise soon because of smart buying, or a buyout in short order from private equity or perhaps [Diageo] itself.
What do you think about Beam, 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!
Interested in another easy way to track Beam? Add it to your watchlist.
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