Gautam Chhaochharia, John Tang & team UBS

Unranked since 2009, UBS shoots straight in to third place — this time under the leadership of newcomer Gautam Chhaochharia and John Tang. The team of six works out of offices in Hong Kong and Mumbai and, according to one money manager, the researchers have “a very good sense of market sentiment along with a company’s underlying fundamentals.” Chhaochharia says an economic recovery in India is critical for many of the Indian companies under UBS’s coverage, and the troop is recommending operations that have strong business models, are market leaders with solid return ratios and cash flows, and are attractively valued. Examples include Exide Industries, which makes storage batteries, and Bajaj Electricals, a manufacturer of consumer electrical equipment. The analysts are also advising clients to buy Chinese exporters, which benefit from a U.S. recovery, and such niche market leaders as China’s Dongyue Group, a refrigerant producer, and Hong Kong’s Yingde Gases Group Co., a manufacturer of industrial-gas products. — ­Carolyn Koo