< The 2016 All-Asia Research Team

Total appearances: 8

Team debut: 2007

Nomura’s six-person regional hardware squad, under the direction of Changwon Chung, repeats in third place. Chung, 46, also leads the No. 3 team in Semiconductors and, with Ashwin Mehta, guides a runner-up crew in IT Services & Software. The analysts who cover this space ”have good industry knowledge and insight and know the trends well,” cheers one advocate. The current environment is characterized by slowing growth for traditional hardware, including personal computers and televisions, as well as smartphones and tablets, although “investment toward data centers is still sustainable, and new equipment — such as virtual reality and electric vehicles — are becoming the new IT markets,” Chung advises. “If VR gains popularity among the public, this will stimulate PC and the related semiconductor industries.” Given their conservative view on the information technology hardware market overall, the researchers — who are based in Hong Kong, Seoul and Taipei — are recommending only investments in companies related to new smartphone components and stocks related to electric vehicle-related supply chains. Examples include South Korea’s CrucialTec Co., which is the innovator of a fingerprint recognition sensor function, and battery makers BYD Co. of China and South Korea–headquartered Samsung SDI Co.