For the eighth consecutive year, money managers chose JPMorgan Chase & Co. as the top provider of European fixed income research.
The U.S.-based bank has earned the number one spot every year since Institutional Investor first began compiling the All-Europe Fixed Income Research Team in 2011. This year, JPMorgan analysts ranked in 18 of the 22 sectors included in the survey, including three first-place finishes.
As reigning champion, JPMorgan leads a top five that is identical to last year’s: Bank of America Merrill Lynch placed second, Deutsche Bank came in third, Barclays ranked fourth, and Citi claimed fifth.
The standings were based on a survey of 680 bond and credit specialists at 381 asset management firms representing $6.2 trillion in European fixed-income assets. Respondents chose their favorite research analysts in each sector, with votes for individual analysts at each firm combined to produce the winning analyst teams.
In addition to this traditional team-based ranking, this year II also compiled a separate ranking based on individual analysts’ scores.
While JPMorgan continued to dominate in the team-based ranking, it fared less well in the analyst-based ranking, placing third with nine ranked analysts. Instead, BofA Merrill Lynch and Deutsche Bank tied for first with 14 analysts apiece.
These results suggest that JPMorgan’s continued success in European fixed income research has been the result of a strong roster of collaborative analysts, as opposed to individual stars.
In the team-based ranking, JPMorgan took first place for its coverage of investment grade credit from retailing and consumer products firms, led by analysts Ela Kurtoglu and Louie Peters. The bank also ranked first in two economics and strategy sectors: credit derivatives, covered by a team led by Rishad Ahluwalia and Saul Doctor, and currency and foreign exchange, covered by a team lead by Paul Meggyesi and John Normand.
No JPMorgan analysts ranked first in the individual analyst ranking, although six placed second, including Doctor and Normand.
In that ranking, BofA Merrill Lynch and Deutsche Bank each earned six first-place spots. BofA Merrill Lynch split its six top positions between two categories, high-yield credit and economics and strategy. These included wins for high-yield health care bond coverage and asset-backed securities strategy.
Deutsche Bank’s six first-place finishes came primarily in the economics and strategy category, with global fundamental credit strategy head James Reid winning in four separate sectors: economics, fixed-income strategy, high-yield strategy, and investment-grade strategy.
To select the members of the eighth annual All‐Europe Fixed‐Income Research Team, Institutional Investor sent questionnaires to bond and credit specialists at leading money management firms around the world. We received responses from more than 680 investment professionals at 381 buy‐side institutions that collectively manage an estimated $6.2 trillion in European fixed‐income assets.
Respondents vote for individual analysts; these votes are combined for firms in each sector. A numerical score is produced for each firm by weighting each vote based on the respondent’s European fixed‐income assets under management and on the place awarded (first, second, third or fourth) to the firm or individual. A team is designated runner‐up when its score falls within 35 percent of the third‐teamer’s score. This year, in addition to the team-based ranking, we produced a ranking based on each individual’s score in each sector.
The analyst recognized as the leader of each winning group is either the individual designated as team leader by the firm or the analyst recognized most frequently by investors. In the High‐Yield and Investment‐Grade research categories, only those analysts who publish independent research as defined by the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority are eligible to be recognized as team leaders. No such restriction applies to team leaders in Economics & Strategy.
This year, in addition to the team-based ranking, we produced a ranking based on each individual’s score in each sector. For both rankings, analysts who switched firms after October 13, 2017, are cited at their previous organizations.
The All‐Europe Fixed‐Income Research Team survey produced complete publishable results (first through third place) in 16 of the 22 polled sectors for the team ranking and in 17 sectors for the individual ranking.
The names of those surveyed and the institutions they work for are kept confidential to ensure their continuing cooperation. Voters must meet eligibility requirements, and winners must achieve a minimum vote count. All ballots are subject to review by our Research Operations Group, and final results may be inspected by an independent auditor.
The 2018 All‐Europe Fixed‐Income Research Team ranking was compiled by Associate Research Editor Denise Hoguet, along with Senior Research Editor Tucker Ewing, and Researchers Denise Best, Xiao Liu and Amy Tan under the guidance of Will Rowlands-Rees, Director of Research.
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