SECOND TEAM Rod Lache Deutsche Bank Securities
In second place for a third year running is Rod Lache of Deutsche Bank Securities, who “publishes frequently and isn’t swayed by short-term swings of the market,” according to one money manager. Top calls include a May 2010 upgrade from neutral to buy on Johnson Controls, at $29.58, on the belief that the market was overstating downside risks of European production and underappreciating the Milwaukee-based auto-parts company’s organic growth, particularly at its battery division. The stock raced to $38.98 in early December — for a 31.8 percent gain that was just shy of the sector’s 33.2 percent advance — and Lache downgraded it to hold, on valuation. The shares skidded 18.2 percent, to $31.88, through August.