< The 2015 All-Europe Research Team
Jonathon Rigby & team
UBS
First-place appearances: 6
Total appearances: 48
Team debut: 1988
Advancing from runner-up to claim third place are Jonathon Rigby and his six-strong UBS squad in London. They report on 34 names in this space plus 15 regional oil field services providers, producing “comprehensive and well-thought-through research,” as one money manager attests. The analysts’ preference going forward is for “high-dividend-yielding majors with robust balance sheets,” says Rigby, 47, singling out Royal Dutch Shell and Total for their ability to continue paying dividends in “almost any conceivable set of conditions.” Their respective price objectives for the Anglo-Dutch and French producers are 2,450p and €55, implying upsides of 21.4 and 20.9 percent from the stocks’ trading values at the end of January. Rigby and his teammates also foresee tremendous potential in natural-gas producers BG Group and Galp Energia. U.K.-based BG is favored for its increased business from Australia and Brazil, as well as the promise of incoming CEO Helge Lund, who will take the reins in March. The shares ended last month at 886.90p, and the UBS researchers project a rise to 1,385p. Regarding Galp, strong earnings growth wins the Portuguese conglomerate a target of €15, which represents a 60.3 percent premium to the stock’s price at the end of January.