SECOND TEAM Howard Chen Credit Suisse
Vaulting from runner-up to second place is Howard Chen of Credit Suisse. “Howard is the ideal analyst — he teases out the drivers of a wide array of stocks and explains them in a timely manner,” marvels a backer. Chen upgraded IntercontinentalExchange from neutral to outperform in August 2010, at $98.21, largely on Atlanta-based exchange’s exposure to high-growth securities such as futures and over-the-counter energy derivatives. The stock bolted to $128.72 in late July before tumbling amid the broad market turmoil; it closed August at $117.95, for a gain of 20.1 percent that bested the sector by 32.1 percentage points.