The buy side says: “He has great industry knowledge, right down to the product level for each of the companies he covers.”
Citi’s P.J. Juvekar, 43, finishes in first place for a second consecutive year. “The analyst makes timely calls, provides excellent written research and knows the industry better than his peers,” insists one portfolio manager. Juvekar upgraded PPG Industries to buy in January, at $59.97, telling clients that the Pittsburgh-based producer of coatings for industrial, architectural and auto markets would benefit from increased auto production, as inventories had been depleted in 2009 because of the Car Allowance Rebate System, better known as the cash-for-clunkers program. Juvekar also believed the company would reap benefits from rising industrial production, to which PPG’s earnings are highly correlated. By the end of August, the stock had raced to $65.83, for a gain of 9.8 percent that breezed past the sector by 17.8 percentage points. “He really knows his companies well and is focused on the key stock drivers,” declares one buy-side backer.
