Andrew Dale, John Purtell & team Macquarie Capital Securities

Advancing from runner-up to third place, the Macquarie Capital Securities crew of 15 co-captained by Andrew Dale and John Purtell has “a very deep bench and a long history in this space,” observes one client. From its base in Hong Kong, the team follows 140 companies, and its top picks include Minmetals Resources, which “continues to be one of the best value stories in the sector,” Dale says. The Beijing-based mineral producer’s “international management team is well place to execute on growth projects,” he adds, one recent example being the company’s successful C$1.3 billion ($1.3 billion) bid in February for Anvil Mining, a Toronto-listed operator of copper mines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In March, Minmetals CEO Andrew Michelmore said the company is looking at similar outfits in Botswana, Namibia and Tanzania to expand its copper-production capabilities. — ­Paul Sweeney