< The 2015 Latin America Research Team
Total appearances: 4
Team debut: 1995Slipping one notch to third place is J.P. Morgan’s team now co-headed by Adrian Huerta and Marcelo Motta. These leaders, working out of Monterrey and São Paulo, respectively, also steer a crew to second place on the Cement & Construction roster. The four analysts covering this sector have “the best grasp of the Mexican real estate space,” one backer insists. They continue to be unimpressed with that country’s Fibra Uno Administración, a real estate investment trust whose portfolio features commercial, industrial and office properties. Since launching coverage on Fibra in February 2014, at 43.16 pesos, the team has maintained a neutral stance, deeming the stock overvalued and the REIT overleveraged. The shares closed at 38.96 pesos in mid-July 2015, down 13 percent over the trailing 12-month period. Reporting on 17 regional real estate names, the researcher’s “coverage is more thorough than anyone else’s,” affirms another portfolio manager, adding that “it’s always helpful to exchange views with them.” Motta, 29, debuted on this roster in 2013 and was solo leader the past two years. Forty-one-year-old Huerta is making his first appearance. He graduated from Mexico’s Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey with a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering and worked at local brokerage firm Vector Casa de Bolsa before moving to J.P. Morgan in 1999.