Based on the aggregated intelligence of 115,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, Arch Coal (NYSE:ACI) has earned a respected four-star ranking. While five-star stocks have been the best performers, our data has shown that four-star stocks still outshine the market by a significant margin and shouldn't be taken lightly; conversely, low-rated stocks have woefully lagged the market average.

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

Arch Coal facts 

   

Headquarters (Founded)

St. Louis, Missouri (1969)

Market Cap

$7.84 billion

Industry

Coal and Consumable Fuels

TTM Revenue

$2.73 billion

Management

CEO Steven Leer (since 1992),

COO John Eaves (since 2002)

Return on Equity (average last three years)

15.5%

Major Competitors

CONSOL Energy (NYSE:CNX),

Massey Energy (NYSE:MEE)

CAPS members bullish on ACI also bullish on

Chesapeake Energy (NYSE:CHK),

Peabody Energy (NYSE:BTU)

CAPS members bearish on ACI also bearish on

James River Coal (NASDAQ:JRCC),

Mosaic (NYSE:MOS)

Sources: Capital IQ, a division of Standard & Poor's, and Motley Fool CAPS. TTM = trailing 12 months.

Over on CAPS, fully 280 of 298 of the All-Star members who have rated Arch Coal -- some 94% -- believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward. These members include stanton17 and Alzo10, both of whom are ranked in the top 15% of our community.

In June, stanton17 noted that "America is sitting on top of an enormous resource in coal. It'll take many years before solar power, wind power, geothermal power, etc. makes a meaningful impact. America will take the easy road for self-sustaining energy and that means instant gratification through coal."

An earlier pitch from Alzo10 in April followed that bullish line of reasoning, further stressing the stock's coal-based opportunities:

Coal is the future. Read again, yes, coal is the future. Soaring oil and gas costs have finally focussed governments all across the globe on all matters coal. Clean coal technology existis and will only imrprove in the coming years. China's demand for energy (and coal) will increase five fold over the next 20 years. All of this leads us to Wyoming. Wyoming's coal is cleaner than anywhere else in the world, oh, and did I forget to mention almost 25% of the world's coal deposits are thought to reside here? Enter [Arch Coal] like a knight in shining armor. This will be big...very big.

What do you think about Arch Coal, or any other stock for that matter? Make your voice heard on Motley Fool CAPS today. More than 115,000 investors are waiting to hear what you have to say. CAPS is 100% free, so simply click here to get started.