< The 2016 All-Europe Research Team
Wouter Vanderhaeghen & team
KBC Securities
First-place appearances: 0
Total appearances: 6
Team debut: 2005
Advancing from runner-up to third place, KBC Securities posts its strongest performance on this lineup since debuting in 2005 at No. 2. Head of research Wouter Vanderhaeghen joined the firm in January 2003 and worked as an equity analyst for five years before assuming his current responsibilities. A specialist on the maritime services, shipping and dredging industries, he reported on those sectors for Bank Degroof before moving to KBC. The 37-year-old holds an MBA from the Vlerick Business School of Belgium’s Universiteit Gent and Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, as well as a master’s degree in finance from University College Ghent. His Brussels-headquartered team of 12 follows 125 Benelux names, impressing clients as “quite knowledgeable, especially on Belgium,” in the words of one fund manager, who also hails the analysts’ reporting on the health care space and small- and midcap players. Melexis, a midsize Belgian manufacturer of advanced integrated semiconductors and sensor systems, is among their preferred companies. The automotive electronics specialist is riding a wave of expanding light-vehicle production, notes Vanderhaeghen, while enjoying a boost from the ongoing increase of semiconductors content per car. In particular, Melexis is poised to benefit from the “growing deployment of in-vehicle safety systems” that both consumer demand and government regulation are driving. The company’s cutting-edge technology promises long-term growth potential as carmakers strive to produce cars that are “smart, safe, sustainable and stylish,” he concludes. KBC’s researchers therefore project a significant upside for Melexis. Its shares closed at €43.31 in mid-January; they foresee a rise to €52.50.
