< The 2014 All-America Research TeamJoseph BuckleyBank of America
Merrill LynchFirst-Place Appearances: 8

Total Appearances: 16

Analyst Debut: 1999Repeating in third place, Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s Joseph Buckley is “a thoughtful and pragmatic” analyst, observes one investor. In his January “Restaurants Year Ahead” report, Buckley added Tim Hortons to his top pick list, explaining that although the Canadian coffee and breakfast giant had struggled in 2013, he expected that the changes being executed under new CEO Marc Caira would bode well for the company’s fundamentals and stock performance. Sure enough, year-over-year revenue rose 7.1 percent in the first half of 2014, to C$1.64 billion ($1.54 billion), driving net income 2.3 percent higher, to C$214.7 million, and propelling earnings per share to C$1.58, for an increase of 14.7 percent. Tim Hortons’ New York Stock Exchange–listed shares traded lower for much of the year but took off in August, on news that management was considering a merger with Miami-based fast-food chain operator Burger King Worldwide. A deal was announced later that month, whereby Burger King would acquire Tim Hortons for C$12.5 billion, and by mid-September the stock had soared 43.2 percent since Buckley’s January call, to $79.89, while the sector slipped 1.4 percent.

RUNNER(S)-UP
Jeffrey Bernstein
Barclays

Sara Senatore
Sanford C. Bernstein & Co.