Paul Sankey  Deutsche Bank Securities The buy side says: “Paul has an excellent international perspective.”

Paul Sankey rockets from runner-up to land in first place for the first time. A 1989 graduate of England’s ­Manchester University with a bachelor’s degree in economics and history, Sankey joined Deutsche Bank Securities in 2000 after stints at the International Energy Agency in Paris and Wood Mackenzie consulting firm in Edinburgh. “He commands a wealth of knowledge and seemingly looks under every rock to find that one key factoid that helps provide clarity,” marvels one investor. ­Sankey, 44, turned positive on refiners last October, chiefly because of a strong export trend and expanding U.S. refining margins. His bullishness was validated by the Standard & Poor’s sector benchmark index’s 42.7 percent rise, which bested the broader group’s gain by 25.6 percentage points, through August.