Total appearances: 12

Team debut: 1993 BTG Pactual’s four analysts under the direction of Alonso Aramburú in New York and Santiago-based César Pérez-Novoa advance from second place to claim the top spot on this lineup, earning investor praise for both their “high service standard,” as one fund manager says, and the accuracy of their stock picking. The group holds a neutral position on Chile, forecasting that higher corporate taxes and the elimination of tax-exemption programs will slow growth. Even so, says 42-year-old Pérez-Novoa, “Chile’s sound financial discipline and strong institutional foundation provide comfort, along with its high savings pressure.” One stock poised to perform well, the BTG researchers believe, is CorpBanca. In January the Santiago-based commercial bank announced its intention to merge with Banco Itaú Chile, a subsidiary of Argentina’s Itaú Unibanco Holding, in a $3.7 billion tie-up that would create Chile’s fourth-largest bank, by assets. The squad predicts resulting growth across the Andes and Central America, noting that Itaú’s management depth and more conservative handling of capital should lead to greater earnings visibility for the combined entity. (Originally targeted to close in the fourth quarter, the transaction was under review as of late July.) This year, Aramburú and Pérez-Novoa also co-captain the No. 2 team in North Andean Countries. In addition, Pérez-Novoa — who joined BTG via its 2012 acquisition of Celfin Capital, where he headed Chilean equity research — works with Edmo Chagas in directing the second- and third-place crews, respectively, in Pulp & Paper and Metals & Mining. He holds a bachelor of science degree in finance from Boston College and a diploma in financial risk management from New York University. Aramburú, 42, earned bachelor’s degrees in finance and marketing at Florida’s Jacksonville University then an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He jumped to BTG in 2009 from Santander Investment, where he was a strategist covering the Southern Cone and Andean countries. Aramburú also co-captains, with Eduardo Rosman, troupes that win runner-up positions in the two Financials sectors, Banks and Nonbanks.