THIRD TEAM Shaun Kelley  BofA Merrill Lynch Global Research

In third place for a second straight year is Shaun Kelley, who “relishes digging just a little deeper than his competitors — and it pays dividends in his research,” declares one buy-side supporter. In January the BofA Merrill Lynch Global Research analyst highlighted his buy recommendation on Las Vegas–based casino operator Wynn Resorts, at $117.89, on valuation and cash flow grounds; Kelley first upgraded the stock from neutral way back in November 2009. The stock shot up 31.2 percent, to $154.72, and bested the sector by 26.2 percentage points since the reiteration, through August. Kelley downgraded gaming-machine maker WMS Industries from buy all the way to sell in April, at $30.01, on the belief that the Waukegan, Illinois–based company faced market-share and product difficulties that would “take longer than a quarter to fix.” The stock had tumbled 27.3 percent, to $21.82, by the end of August.