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Ross Smotrich and his Barclays team of five repeat on the third tier. The analysts win praise for their “deep understanding and feel for the sector,” as one money manager puts it, as well as their “courage to be contrarian when the fundamentals demand it,” in the words of another. In December they dubbed Prologis a top pick, based on its strong earnings, dividend growth, improving balance sheet and global market share. Shares of the San Francisco–based developer of industrial properties, then at $27.18, had surged 25.7 percent, to $34.17, by the end of August. The team tracks 40 stocks and has high hopes in the year ahead for Boston Properties, a Massachusetts-based outfit that develops and manages offices throughout the Northeast corridor and in San Francisco; the researchers believe it is “underappreciated,” Smotrich says. RUNNER(S)-UP Michael Mueller, Anthony Paolone & team J.P. Morgan Jeffrey Spector & team Bank of America Merrill Lynch |
Financial Institutions – REITs: 2012 Third