The 2014 All-Asia Research Team: China, No. 3: Minggao Shen & team

Advancing to No. 3 after three years at runner-up, Citi fields a troop of 30 Hong Kong–based researchers under the guidance of Minggao Shen. In tracking 220 companies, they bring to bear a “deep understanding of the Chinese economy,” one portfolio manager asserts. A long-standing team favorite is computer and portable device maker Lenovo Group. In November 2012 the analysts highlighted their buy rating on the Beijing-based technology giant, at HK$6.89, advising that increasing demand for its smartphones would continue to spur growth. Lenovo’s stock jumped 27.2 percent over the 12 months through late April, to HK$8.80, even as China’s broad market lost 2.5 percent. Going forward, they recommend that investors buy Anhui Conch Cement Co., believing that the Anhui-based cement supplier will be among the capital goods companies to benefit from domestic monetary easing. Their target price for the Hong Kong–listed shares is HK$35, which represents a 20.7 percent premium to their late April value.