Financial Institutions – Brokers, Asset Managers & Exchanges: First

Credit Suisse’s Howard Chen ascends one notch to the top spot. His coverage universe comprises 22 stocks, but he keeps sights on a good many more. Clients applaud his recent expansion into alternative asset managers. He initiated coverage on Carlyle Group in June with an outperform rating, at $21.33, making the case that the Washington-based private equity and alternative asset management firm was poised to deliver strong earnings and dividend distributions — in part because of its global footprint across multiple investment strategies. (The firm held its initial public offering the month before, with the shares priced at $22.) Through August the stock surged 22.9 percent, to $26.22, and bested the sector by 13.9 percentage points. It remains a top pick. Chen, 34, joined Credit Suisse in 2001 from Morgan Stanley’s mergers, acquisitions and restructuring department; he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics at New Haven, Connecticut’s Yale University. “Howard is an up-and-comer to watch — his knowledge is both broad and deep,” declares one money manager. Adds another: “He is rapidly becoming the source on this space.”