Sriyan Pietersz & team J.P. Morgan

J.P. Morgan’s five Bangkok-based analysts and leader Sriyan Pietersz, who repeat at second, track 43 stocks with “authority and objectivity,” asserts one enthusiast. In June they issued a counterconsensus downgrade of Pruksa Real Estate from overweight to underweight, at 17.73 baht, citing the Bangkok-based homebuilder’s declining revenues and management’s decision to accept smaller down payments from condo purchasers than its peers. By the end of last year, the stock had dropped to 11.30 baht, but it rebounded somewhat, reaching 15.10 baht by the end of March — for a net decline of 14.8 percent that trailed Thailand’s broad market by 28 percentage points. “They make accurate recommendations, even sell calls,” marvels another backer. For the remainder of the year, the researchers are bullish on other Bangkok-based builders such as Supalai and Asian Property Development, largely on valuation. — ­Ben Mattlin