< The 2016 All-Europe Research Team
Andreas Willi & team
J.P. Morgan Cazenove
First-Place Appearances: 5
Total Appearances: 19
Team Debut: 1986
“Excellent, independent-minded recommendations” distinguish Andreas Willi’s J.P. Morgan Cazenove squad from its peers, in the opinion of one fund manager. The six-strong group reclaims the top spot it lost two years ago, when the analysts dipped to No. 2. They report on 43 European capital goods names and plan to add to their portfolio in the year ahead. Willi, 45, and his associates lowered their rating on Scotland’s Weir Group from neutral to underweight in January 2015, at 1,629.94p, owing to earnings pressure from suppressed oil prices and a steadily declining number of operating rigs. Although the stock climbed to 2,002.36 in late May, it has not since regained that height, tumbling to 851.50p in mid-January — for a loss of 47.8 percent since their downgrade. During the same period, the regional sector declined by 7.2 percent. Willi’s crew also has become less optimistic on the prospects for Sweden-based household-appliance maker Electrolux, reducing its rating on the shares from overweight to neutral in mid-March, primarily on valuation. Ten months later they had slumped 30.6 percent, to 178.30 Swedish kronor, which was worse even than the 18.7 percent loss posted by Europe’s capital goods companies overall. The analysts’ “calm and measured insights speak to a superb team,” says another client. One name they do like going forward is GKN, a U.K.-headquartered multinational manufacturer of components for use in the aerospace and automotive industries. Over a 12-month horizon, they project that fundamentals can support a price of 380p, thanks to expanding global auto production. GKN closed at 281.70p in mid-January.