Li Chung (Michael) Chou, Seung Hoon Han & team Deutsche Bank

Deutsche Bank’s eight-member team, co-led by newcomers Li Chung (Michael) Chou and Seung Hoon Han, rises from runner-up to third place. Investors say the researchers, working out of Seoul and Taipei, excel at “detailed and fundamentals-driven research,” and are “the first I would ask for any Asia semiconductors fundamental views.” In November the analysts initiated coverage on SK Hynix, an Icheon, South Korea–based manufacturer of dynamic random-access memory and flash memory chips. They told investors to buy the stock, then at 24,100 won, on the belief that the company was well positioned to benefit from an anticipated first-quarter 2012 recovery in the market for memory. The shares had zipped to 29,250 won by the end of March, for a gain of 21.4 percent that outpaced the sector by 2.9 percentage points — and the team remains bullish. — ­Pam Baker