The 2014 All-Europe Fixed-Income Research Team: Manufacturing/General Industrials (HY), No. 3: Patrick Kersting, Teofilo Lasarte & team

< The 2014 All-Europe Fixed-Income Research Team

Patrick Kersting, Teofilo Lasarte & team
Bank of America Merrill Lynch

First-place appearances:0

Total appearances: 3

Team debut: 2012

Teofilo Lasarte and Patrick Kersting usher their Bank of America Merrill Lynch team to its third straight No. 3 finish. This London-based group, whose head count is down to three from last year’s five, tracks 22 credit issuers, a reduction of ten over the past year. French auto parts manufacturer Faurecia is among the analysts’ favorites. Last March they initiated coverage on Faurecia with a 30 percent overweight rating on its euro-denominated 9.375 percent 2016 notes, at 113 percent of par value. They liked the multinational player’s increasingly diversified customer base and geographical reach, and especially lauded its burgeoning independence from majority owner Peugeot of France. The notes leaped to 119.5 percent of par, through December. Going forward, the researchers favor certain issues from Spanish auto-components and systems manufacturer Gestamp Automoción. Capacity additions should combine with declining capital expenditures to deliver an earnings bump for Gestamp, so they recommend both its euro- and dollar-denominated 2020 notes. Lasarte “is a diligent analyst with differentiated insights,” attests one fund manager. Kersting also appears as co-head (with Navann Ty) of the No. 3 crews in High-Yield Basic Materials and High-Yield Retailing/Consumer Products. He moved on to other responsibilities with BofA Merrill late last year.

See also Teofilo Lasarte and Patrick Kersting’s profile in the 2013 All-Europe Fixed-Income Research Team.

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