There are some companies that inspire as much pessimism as optimism, no matter how popular they get. Others have an enthusiastic fan base and hardly any detractors at all. Take a look at these five-star stocks from the Motley Fool CAPS service, for example:
|
Company |
30-day Return |
1-year Return |
Bulls |
Bears |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Portfolio Recovery Associates (NASDAQ:PRAA) |
8.19% |
2.80% |
663 |
8 |
|
Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) |
9.40% |
16.77% |
602 |
5 |
|
Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK-B) |
2.84% |
19.03% |
340 |
2 |
|
Natus Medical (NASDAQ:BABY) |
10.24% |
16.09% |
227 |
5 |
|
USG Corporation |
4.74% |
(21.32%) |
214 |
3 |
|
Ceradyne (NASDAQ:CRDN) |
(4.03%) |
11.12% |
191 |
3 |
|
Rofin-Sinar Technologies (NASDAQ:RSTI) |
13.00% |
74.94% |
164 |
1 |
|
Tata Motors (NYSE:TTM) |
5.54% |
63.05% |
161 |
1 |
|
Viropharma |
1.19% |
(35.69%) |
156 |
4 |
|
Walter Industries |
(14.17%) |
5.36% |
142 |
2 |
Six of these companies have outperformed the S&P 500 over the past 30 days (3.47%), and five outpaced the market index over 12 months (15.50%) -- some of them significantly so. The standout is Motley Fool Hidden Gems recommendation Rofin-Sinar, which has crushed the market over both the long and short term, but Tata Motors is no slouch, either, and Hidden Gems picks Portfolio Recovery Associates and Middleby have looked very impressive lately.
Admitedly, this is a rather unscientific table. Our CAPS service is still in its beta stage, so it's likely that many of our Foolish stock picks are highly regarded by our community. But still, this level of bullishness is remarkable.
It may be a sign of the times that Portfolio Recovery Associates sits atop this list, with the housing bubble ever on the verge of popping and the one-two punch of high interest rates and even higher oil prices weighing on our wallets.
Regarding Berkshire Hathaway, HotHandTron says: "Does this even count as a pick? I hereby dub myself Captain Obvious." Our users agree that all of these businesses are facing bright futures, and it's a diverse bunch. There are microcaps like Natus Medical, behemoths like Berkshire, lasers, biotech, financial services, homebuilding supplies, and even some international flavor from Tata. I'm not saying that you should go forth and build a portfolio to mirror this list, but it does present a few intriguing ideas.
Do you have any objections to these picks? Any better ideas? Click on over to CAPS and share your thoughts on these companies and many others. The more, the merrier -- and we're already a very merry bunch.
Rofin-Sinar , Middleby, and Portfolio Recovery Associates are Motley Fool Hidden Gems recommendations. Try a 30-day free trial to our service for undiscovered treasures, and see the next great opportunity before the other CAPS players do. Berkshire Hathaway is an Inside Value pick.
Fool contributor Anders Bylund holds no position in any of the companies discussed here -- not that he'd mind a couple of them. You can check out Anders' holdings if you like. Foolish disclosure is well-rounded in and of itself.
