There is a lot of optimism about the asset management industry these days. Goldman Sachs analysts Marc Irizarry and Emily Simon added their voices to the chorus this week. They lifted their target prices on asset managers on average 2 percent to 4 percent and pegged growth in earnings per share of about 20 percent. Money managers as a class outperformed the market. But people seem to think there is a lot of upside for some companies. The best positioned companies, according to the analysts, are those with international reach, a strong institutional business and decent valuations. Not every company was praised. They rate Janus and W.P. Stewart & Co. as sells.

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