Only five firms are home to research crews considered the best in their respective sectors on the 2016 All-Asia Research Team, Institutional Investor’s exclusive annual ranking of the region’s leading sell-side analysts:
• Bank of America Merrill Lynch
• Citi
• Credit Suisse
• Morgan Stanley
• UBS
Morgan Stanley researchers are No. 1 in more than half the survey’s sectors — 18 of the 35. Credit Suisse captures seven first-place finishes (an increase of five from last year); while BofA Merrill wins six, Citi three and UBS one. Click on the Leaders link in the navigation table at right to view the full list of ranked firms.
The 2016 ballot included two changes: the Consumer category was split into Consumer/Discretionary and Consumer/Staples, and Transportation was excised from Industrials. Of the 31 sectors unchanged from last year, 18 are dominated by returning champions (albeit with some changes to team leadership, noted below), six advance from second place, one jumps from third and six vault from runner-up.
Listed here by sector are this year’s top-ranked squads. Click on a leader’s name to view that team’s profile. Please note: Free site registration will be requested of anyone who hasn’t already signed up.
Australia/New Zealand
Morgan Stanley
Pirenc plants the Morgan Stanley flag stop the sector for a second straight year — and the third time in four years.
Autos & Auto Parts
Morgan Stanley
Yeung guides his Morgan Stanley squad to a second consecutive first-place appearance.
Banks
Credit Suisse
Jain leads Credit Suisse to its first sector victory.
Basic Materials
Morgan Stanley
Last year, under the direction of Zhang and co-captain Chun Hung (John) Lam, Morgan Stanley topped the roster for the first time since 2000. She defends the crown as solo leader this year.
China
Huaxiang (Edward) Xu, Ran (Richard) Xu & team
Morgan Stanley
Edward Xu and Richard Xu guide Morgan Stanley to its first appearance in first place.
Consumer/Discretionary
Bank of America Merrill Lynch
Han and Luo led the BofA Merrill team to No. 1 in Consumer from 2013 through 2015. That category has been divided between Discretionary and Staples, and the firm — with Han as co-leader — outpaces all others in both sectors.
Consumer/Staples
Young-Ah Han, Yuanyuan (Tina) Long & team
Bank of America Merrill Lynch
Long debuts in first place as co-leader of the most highly regarded crew in this category, which was created when Consumer was split into Discretionary and Staples.
Credit Strategy
Guo Xiang (Kelvin) Pang & team
Morgan Stanley
Pang celebrates his first appearance on the All-Asia Research Team by steering Morgan Stanley to its third straight victory in Credit Strategy.
Currency & Rates Strategy
Morgan Stanley
Last year, under the direction of Yang and co-pilot Geoffrey Kendrick, Morgan Stanley flew from runner-up to first place. Yang is solo leader this time around, but his crew continues to outperform all others.
Economics
Morgan Stanley
Ahya shepherds the Morgan Stanley squad to the winner’s circle for the first time since 2011, when he shared leadership responsibilities with Qing Wang.
Equity Strategy
Credit Suisse
Under Siva’s direction Credit Suisse tops the roster for the third time since 2010.
Gaming & Lodging
Kam Chung (Kenneth) Fong & team
Credit Suisse
This is the first time that either Fong or Credit Suisse has led the sector lineup.
Health Care & Pharmaceuticals
Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley under Bin Li was No. 1 for the past seven years. New team leader Wu extends the firm’s winning streak.
Hong Kong
Praveen Choudhary, Simon Lee & team
Morgan Stanley
Choudhary, Lee and their Morgan Stanley associates mark a third straight appearance in first place.
India
Morgan Stanley
Desai shepherds his Morgan Stanley squad to a second consecutive victory.
Indonesia
Mulya Chandra, Sean Gardiner & team
Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley repeats in first place, but this year the team is overseen by newcomers Chandra and Gardiner.
Industrials
Kevin Luo, Huaxiang (Edward) Xu & team
Morgan Stanley
Luo, Xu and their Morgan Stanley crew take the top spot for a second year in a row.
Insurance
Credit Suisse
Credit Suisse scores its first sector victory under the guidance of Zhou.
Internet
Di (Dick) Wei, Zhiran (Evan) Zhou & team
Credit Suisse
Last year Wei captained the Credit Suisse squad that captured first place; this year he shares oversight with previously unranked Zhou.
Malaysia
Stephen Hagger, Ting Min Tan & team
Credit Suisse
This is the sixth straight year that Hagger, Tan and Credit Suisse have finished in first place.
Oil & Gas
Hanzhi Ding, Kyung (Sonia) Song & team
Bank of America Merrill Lynch
Ding, Song and BofA Merrill return to the top after a year at No. 2.
Philippines
UBS
Santiago and UBS top the sector roster for the first time since 2008.
Power
Citi
This is the tenth year in a row that Lau has led the Citi team all the way to No. 1.
Property
Citi
Choi shepherds the Citi troupe to a seventh straight victory.
Quantitative Research
Bank of America Merrill Lynch
The BofA Merrill team under Tupper advances from second place.
Singapore
Sean Gardiner, Nicholas Lord & team
Morgan Stanley
Newcomers Gardiner and Lord lead Morgan Stanley to its first sector championship.
Small- & Midcapitalization Stocks
Citi
Lau’s Citi group has finished in first place in five of the past six years.
South Korea
Young-Ah Han, Bryan Song & team
Bank of America Merrill Lynch
It’s six straight years at No. 1 for BofA Merrill. For the past seven years, Song was solo leader; this time around he shares the reins with Han.
Taiwan
Morgan Stanley
Lu and Morgan Stanley capture first place for a third straight year.
Technology/Hardware
Morgan Stanley
Lu leads her Morgan Stanley squad to a second consecutive victory.
Technology/IT Services & Software
Morgan Stanley
Gupta and Morgan Stanley celebrate their first visit to the winner’s circle.
Technology/Semiconductors
Randy Abrams, Manish Nigam & team
Credit Suisse
Abrams and Nigam are No. 1 for the first time, and Credit Suisse returns to the top of the roster after a 13-year absence.
Telecommunications
Morgan Stanley
Killa and his cohorts dominate this roster for a third year running.
Thailand
Supavud Saicheua, Therapong Vachirapong & team
Bank of America Merrill Lynch
Saicheua, Vachirapong and their BofA Merrill colleagues claim a second consecutive victory.
Transportation
Morgan Stanley
The last time this sector was included on the ballot, in 2013, Xu and Morgan Stanley finished in second place; this year they are champions of the newly reinstated category.
