< The 2016 All-Europe Research Team
Simon Larkin, Nicholas Thomas & team
Bank of America Merrill Lynch
First-place appearances: 1
Total appearances: 22
Team debut: 1991
Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s Simon Larkin, 44, and 41-year-old Nicholas Thomas direct their European leisure and hotels squad to its third straight appearance at No. 3. Working out of London, the analysts report on 16 companies in this sector, and one of their favorite names since last January has been American-British travel and leisure concern Carnival. Return on invested capital and margins for the world’s largest cruise ship operator could reclaim their lofty 2008 levels by 2017, the analysts reason, with earnings per share more than doubling during that period. Carnival’s London-listed shares had leaped 22.3 percent by the middle of last month, rising to 3,575p during a period in which the regional sector gained less than 1 percent.