Grade The Analysts: Deutscher Banker Wins While Fleet Sales Trip Up Real-Timers
They called the market correctly, but they did bet on the wrong horses. Bloomberg polled the usual assemblage of analysts regarding the final tally of July new car sales, and the analysts did not disappoint when it came to the overall market. On average, they nailed the July SAAR of 14.1 million. When it came to the Detroit 3, they were way too optimistic. And it just so happens that the chief car analyst of Germany’s largest bank is the winner of this month’s Grade the Analysts.
July Grade the Analysts
RankAnalyst GMFord Chrysler SAARSAAR DiffOEM DiffOverall1Rod Lache (Deutsche Bank)-0.9%-0.2%14.0%14.00.6%10.5%11.1%2Jessica Caldwell (Edmunds.com)-0.3%-2.5%9.2%14.00.6%10.7%11.3%3Joseph Spak (RBC)1.5%0.3%14.0%14.00.6%13.4%14.0%4Emmanuel Rosner (CLSA)-0.4%1.1%11.0%14.31.6%12.4%14.0%5Chris Ceraso (Credit Suisse)0.5%1.2%13.0%13.82.0%12.3%14.3%6Jesse Toprak (TrueCar.com)0.3%-1.1%18.0%14.10.1%14.8%14.9%7Alec Gutierrez (Kelley)1.5%-0.3%16.0%14.00.6%14.8%15.4%8Brian Johnson (Barclays)-0.8%1.8%16.0%14.20.9%14.6%15.5%9John Sousanis (Ward’s)8.2%-3.0%8.4%14.10.1%19.5%19.6%10Peter Nesvold (Jefferies)8.9%5.3%18.0%14.10.1%29.8%29.9%11Patrick Archambault (Goldman)4.9%6.1%NA14.00.6%121.2%121.7%12George Magliano (IHS)NANANA14.10.1%300.0%300.1%13Jeff Schuster (LMC Automotive)NANANA14.10.1%300.0%300.1%14Alan Baum (Baum & Associates)NANANA14.10.1%300.0%300.1%15Ryan Brinkman (JPMorgan)NANANA13.91.3%300.0%301.3%Average2.1%0.8%14.0%14.1Actual-6.4%-3.8%12.6%14.1Rod Lache of Deutsche Bank made first place, powered by a good dose of healthy pessimism when it came to GM and Ford. A bigger dose of pessimism would have put Rod closer to the actual numbers. But To win, you don’t have to be right, you only have to be better than the rest of the field. And the field was WAY to optimistic.
Those in possession of real time data failed with Jesse Toprak of TrueCar in place six, and Alec Gutierrez of Kelley Blue Book in place 7. Trophy analyst Jessica Caldwell takes an honorable close second.
When Ed Niedermeyer and I visited Edmunds and TrueCar last May, both of them confirmed that they could call the month with high precision based on the real time data collected from dealers – what throws them off is fleet sales. Those they have to guess, and they guessed too high.
P.S.: We applaud the growing number of analysts that doe more than just throw out a SAAR. That won’t get you far with your clients, and at TTAC. Remember: Guesses for all Detroit 3 have to be in it to win it.
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
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