< The 2014 All-Europe Research Team
The Citi pair led by Thomas Chauvet drops back to second place after a year at No. 1. This London-based duo covers eight stocks, coordinating with colleagues in Milan who follow an additional three — and Chauvet says his group is likely to add two companies to its roster this year. In 2013 the sector “for the first time in over five years underperformed the European market,” he notes. Although they rose 15.8 percent, luxury shares trailed the broad market by 2.3 percentage points. Despite that trend, the analysts are reiterating their positive long-term view, on the back of “a sustainable double-digit earnings growth profile,” Chauvet explains, as well as “high exposure to emerging-markets Asia [and] global tourism, emergence of emerging-markets growth relays, absolute pricing power and signs of industry consolidation.” One of the names the researchers most prefer is Prada, thanks in part to the Italian fashion house’s strong expansion in China, long-term upside from the Miu Miu brand, robust balance sheet and significant potential for capital returns, he says. Clients appreciate the crew’s “company insights and deep dives into individual operations,” as one supporter puts it, “as well as independent research and analysis.” |