Based on the aggregated intelligence of 135,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, real estate finance company NorthStar Realty Finance (NYSE:NRF) has earned a respected four-star ranking.

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

NorthStar facts

Headquarters (Founded)

New York City (1997)

Market Cap

$264.6 Million

Industry

REIT

Trailing-12-Month Revenue

$105.8 Million

Management

President/CEO David Hamamoto (Since 2003)

CFO Andrew Richardson (Since 2006)

Return on Equity (Average, Past Three Years)

26.9%

Dividend Yield

10.1%

CAPS Members Bullish on NRF Also Bullish on

General Electric (NYSE:GE)

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC)

CAPS Members Bearish on NRF Also Bearish on

Ford Motor (NYSE:F)

Hovnanian Enterprises (NYSE:HOV)

Citigroup (NYSE:C)

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

On CAPS, 444 of the 473 members who have rated NorthStar -- 94% -- believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward. These bulls include bglaze250 and All-Star TSIF, who is ranked in the top 1% of our community.

Just last month, bglaze250 tapped NorthStar as a purveyor of potentially prime property: 

Class-A office space in major cities left unrented and new real estate opportunities shunned by investors and firms, has left the share prices of [NorthStar] and other like REITs shaky and low. However, this cannot persist forever, and with the recovery of the international financial markets, [commercial real estate] will begin to appreciate in price, and [NorthStar], despite their debt, should come out on top.

In a pitch from the same day, TSIF also shows trust in the investment trust:

[REITs] come in all flavors, land, hotels, apartments, retail stores, warehousing, etc. [NorthStar] is a little bit of a mix, specializing in acquiring distressed real estate and lease properties. While most [REITs] have found a way to hold dividends against losses, NorthStar has paid them in a mix of stock and cash. If you can find some [REITs] that eventually recover and get back in their high dividend payout, and you acquire them for a fraction of their book value, then you have the potential to someday get dividends that are substantial each year to the price per share you purchased the REIT at ... I believe Northstar is the little REIT that can.

What do you think about NorthStar, or any other stock for that matter? Make your voice heard on Motley Fool CAPS today. More than 135,000 investors are waiting to hear what you have to say. CAPS is 100% free, so get started!