SECOND TEAM Robert Hopkins BofA Merrill Lynch Global Research
For a fifth consecutive year — and for the seventh time in the past eight years — Robert Hopkins of BofA Merrill Lynch Global Research lands in second place. “Bob has a depth of experience covering these companies that few other analysts can match,” cheers one buy-side champion. In December, Hopkins elevated Covidien — a device manufacturer headquartered in Dublin with operational headquarters in Mansfield, Massachusetts — to top pick for 2011, dubbing the shares a bargain at $45.42 in light of the company’s diversified product portfolio. By the end of August, the stock had risen 14.9 percent, to $52.18. During the same period the sector gained just 1.3 percent.