< The 2015 All-Europe Research Team
Benjamin Kohnke, Uwe Schupp & team
Deutsche Bank
First-place appearances: 3
Total appearances: 8
Team debut: 2005
Deutsche Bank’s five-strong crew slips to third place after a year at No. 2. The analysts, guided by Frankfurt-based Benjamin Kohnke and Uwe Schupp, nonetheless garner praise for “their consistent ability to deliver alpha in the European small- and midcap space, despite the asset class having become even more volatile,” as one fund manager says. Aside from such larger factors as low interest rates, many of Europe’s small- and midcap companies “have done a fair amount of homework over the last several years and have used the postcrisis period to invest into organic growth, which is now finally coming through in an overall low-growth environment,” says Schupp, 41. “Combined with a reasonable valuation, we are constructive, with the small caveat that selectivity is more paramount than ever.” One theme the researchers are pursuing is structural growth stories, found predominantly in Internet and e-commerce industries, which have seen several initial public offerings over the past few quarters, notes Kohnke, 37. One example is SLM Solutions Group, a German provider of three-dimensional printing technology that raised €180 million ($245 million) in its May initial public offering on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. Finally, Deutsche’s researchers are also monitoring the ongoing impact of consolidation on their sector, especially in telecoms, Kohnke adds. This trend benefits service providers such as Germany’s Drillisch and United Internet.
