The buy side says: “John doesn’t become wed to his stocks and so is willing to change his ratings.”
Holding on to the top spot for a second straight year is J.P. Morgan’s John Faucher. Known as a “real pro” who is not afraid to ask management tough questions, Faucher impressed investors with his coverage of the Coca-Cola Co. this year. In January the 41-year-old analyst downgraded the Atlanta-based soft-drink manufacturer’s stock from buy to neutral, at $54.24, on valuation. In early August, after the shares had inched up only 4 percent and trailed the sector by 2.6 percentage points, Faucher upgraded them to buy, at $56.41, dubbing the stock a bargain relative to its peers after months of underperformance. So far the upgrade appears to have been premature, however; Coke’s share price was mostly flat in August, closing the month at $55.88, as the sector slipped 1.4 percent.
