Marina Alexeenkova Renaissance
second team Elena Sakhnova & team VTB
third team Mikhail Stiskin & team Troika
Marina Alexeenkova of Renaissance Capital captures the crown for a third consecutive year. The Moscow-based analyst, who works solo, “is always ahead of the curve,” marvels one investor. Alexeenkova, 36, upgraded Uralkali from hold to buy last March, at $1.95, making the case that the Russian minerals producer was unfairly beaten up over temporarily soft demand for fertilizer potash. Sure enough, the stock abruptly shot up as high as $5.25 in October before slipping back to $4.50 by the end of January.
Increased travel and more client visits paid dividends for Moscow-based Elena Sakhnova and her two-member team at VTB Capital, which debuts at second place. “She’s investor-friendly, with a high degree of media and conference visibility,” declares one loyalist. The analysts launched coverage on Russia’s Silvinit last March with a buy rating on the preferred shares, which she judged a better bargain than the common shares. The primary driver, she argued, was the potash provider’s vigorous sales to emerging markets. Through January the preferreds tripled in value, from $130 to $390, outperforming the common shares by 27.6 percentage points and trouncing the sector by a stunning 134.9 points.
In third place is the previously unranked Troika Dialog duo led by newcomer Mikhail Stiskin; he also co-captains the No. 3 team in Metals & Mining. “Their knowledge is thorough and comprehensive,” affirms one money manager. The Moscow-based analysts rated Acron a buy in January 2009, at $10.20, on valuation. By the end of January 2010, the Russian agricultural-minerals supplier’s stock had soared to $31.
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