Alonso Aramburú, César Pérez-Novoa & team BTG Pactual First-place appearances: 3

Total appearances: 6

Team debut: 2007 The ten-strong BTG Pactual team co-led by Alonso Aramburú in New York and Santiago-based César Pérez-Novoa slips back to second place after claiming the top spot for two years. “We are advising our clients to maintain or build an overweight exposure to Colombia and to invest selectively in Peru,” says Aramburú, “with a focus on mainly domestic-demand stocks — mainly banks.” On this theme, Colombia’s Banco Davivienda is a favorite. Already the nation’s third-largest bank, by assets, the Bogotá-based institution is primed to benefit both from economic growth that should drive demand for loans and from gradual improvements in profitability within its Central American operations, the analysts contend. Together, Aramburú and Pérez-Novoa also direct the squad that captures first place for its coverage of Chile. Separately, Pérez-Novoa, with Edmo Chagas, co-captains the No. 2 and No. 3 crews, respectively, in Pulp & Paper and Metals & Mining; while Aramburú, with Eduardo Rosman, oversee troupes that garner runner-up positions in the two Financials sectors, Banks and Nonbanks.