THIRD TEAM Benjamin Bowler, Tatyana Hube & team BofA Merrill Lynch Global Research
London-based Benjamin Bowler and newcomer Tatyana Hube, who works out of New York, guide the 11-member BofA Merrill Lynch Global Research team to a second straight third-place appearance. In December the strategists recommended the 6 percent mandatory convertible preferred shares of Apache Corp., a natural-gas exploration and production company headquartered in Houston, and the 2.875 percent 2038 senior convertible notes of Irving, Texas–based oil and gas producer Pioneer Natural Resources; they were bullish on commodities, in general, and on energy companies, in particular. In early May they urged clients to take profits on expectations that the energy sector faced “rising macro risks.” By that time the Apache shares had appreciated 8.9 percent, from $64.60 to $70.38; the Pioneer bonds, 18 percent, from $149.10 to $176. Since then the instruments declined 21 and 24 percent, respectively, through August. “They’ve provided ways to increase yield in the current environment while focusing on downside protection,” explains one backer. “They can customize a trading strategy to do whatever you want.”