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Manoj Menon
Deutsche Bank
First-place appearances: 2

Total appearances: 3

Analyst debut: 2011

Deutsche Bank’s Manoj Menon repeats atop this sector and also headlines the roster in Consumer/Staples. “In an industry where aligning with consensus is the norm, Manoj boldly goes against consensus with high convictions,” compliments one client. “He probably derives the conviction from his work in the industry and his ability to look beyond the obvious.” One example is a January buy call Menon made on United Spirits, a Bangalore-based alcohol manufacturer and distributor. He believed that United Spirits would turn around after U.K. drinks giant Diageo closed its 111.7 billion rupee ($2.04 billion) acquisition of an expanded stake in the company, he says. The deal was announced in November 2012 and closed in July, leaving Diageo with a controlling share of more than 25 percent. Cheers to that: By mid-October the stock had jumped 39.6 percent, to 2,521.85 rupees, while the sector advanced just 5 percent. Menon, 38, joined Deutsche in October 2012 to cover the Indian consumer, media and retail sectors. Before that he spent five years as a consumer analyst at Kotak Securities and three years as a commercial manager at Mumbai-based consumer packaged-goods company Hindustan Unilever. He earned an MBA from the Faculty of Management Studies at the University of Delhi and a bachelor’s degree in commerce from Malappuram’s University of Calicut. — Katie Gilbert