Vontobel Winner

Founded in 1924, Swiss-based Vontobel (assets under management: US$140 billion), with offices across the world, has a robust investment effort in emerging markets, which has about 15% of its AUM. The company declares that it has spent decades building an investment team to home in on EM stocks and bonds.

Over the past five years, its earnings per share from EM companies have grown 14.4% annually. It also sponsors a bevy of EM mutual funds.

The firm focuses on active management. As Vontobel states on its website, in seeking EM stocks, it looks for returns that are “driven by a long-term investment in companies with relatively stable and predictable earnings growth that can be sustained for extended periods.”

Vontobel is a font of insights about developing markets. For example, its analysts wrote that China (which despite its status as the world’s second largest economy is still classified as an EM) should be able to climb out of the problem with its ailing property sector—and thus its bond prices should recover in the next 12 months. The firm also sees opportunity in EM equities, which it said in a recent commentary trade at a 44% discount to developed markets’ stocks.

Finalists

• Principal Finisterre