Based on the aggregated intelligence of 180,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, Spanish telecom giant Telefonica (TEF 0.91%) has earned a coveted five-star ranking.

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

Telefonica facts

Headquarters (founded)

Madrid (1924)

Market Cap

$63.0 billion

Industry

Integrated telecom services

Trailing-12-Month Revenue

$83.1 billion

Management

Chairman/CEO Cesar Izuel
COO Julio Lopez

Return on Equity (average, past 3 years)

33.4%

Cash/Debt

$8.9 billion / $89.2 billion

Competitors

America Movil (NYSE: AMX)
BT Group (NYSE: BT)
Vodafone Group (NASDAQ: VOD)

Sources: S&P Capital IQ and Motley Fool CAPS.

On CAPS, 97% of the 1,087 of the members who have rated Telefonica believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward.

Just last month, one of those bulls, All-Star JakilaTheHun, tapped the stock as a particularly tempting value selection:

The stock is getting battered for a few reasons:

(1) Significant debt load,
(2) Eurozone exposure, and
(3) Brazilian downturn

All of these are a bit frightening, but overall, I find the stock interesting enough to consider. Even if the Brazilian downturn harms Telefonica in Latin America for a few years, I still think that there's a ton of growth left in that region. The Eurozone crisis certainly harms Telefonica, but this is also a telecom company and not a bank. People are reluctant to eliminate their phone service even in the dismal economic environment of the eurozone.

If you want market-topping returns, you need to put together the best portfolio you can. Owning exceptional stocks is a surefire way to secure your financial future. Of course, despite its five-star rating, Telefonica may not be your top choice.

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Want to see how well (or not so well) the stocks in this series are performing? Follow the TrackPoisedTo CAPS account.