Since the stock market suffered a big collapse a year ago, it has come a long way to improve and a big reason for that are the stocks that are doing well and helping to bring up the rest of the market. The stocks listed here are the top performers of the past year, and the ones that have helped give hope to investors who worry about the strength of the American economy.
The stocks that have done the best in the last few months are the companies who have been able to recover and survive the economic collapse that hit in 2008-09. These are the stocks of companies that are doing things right in the new economic reality.
- Office Depot Inc. has seen its stock go up almost 900% percent from when they hit bottom on March 9, 2009. In October 2007, the stocks of the company were sitting at $20, but by March 2009 the stocks had fallen to as low as 18$. These days, the stock is back up at $7.41, which shows that the company has begun to recover and move its way back up.
- Fifth Third Bancorp is a regional bank that once traded at $40 before the market collapse but at the beginning of March the stock fell to a horrible $1.39. Since then, the stock has improved by 829.2 percent, rising up to $12.73. A long way from its $40 height, but at least it is moving in the right direction.
- Genworth Financial Inc. was trading at $30 in the spring of 2004 and it kept trading at that height for quite some time before it fell to 91 cents by the beginning of March. The company took $2 billion in losses and it looked like the end. However, the company has worked hard to improve and the stock of the company has risen by 1,701 percent to $16.39, making it the biggest performer of the last 12 months.
- When the economic crisis hit, people stopped traveling and when they did that, companies like Wyndham Worldwide suffered. While the company once traded much higher, the stock hit a low point of $3.10 in March of 2009. However, thanks to an improving economy and more travelling, the stock has improved by 695 percent to $24.01.
Throughout the past few months, all we have heard is the companies that are failing and the trouble at the stock market. However, there are some bright spots that many should remember and the companies listed here are the companies that have made the right choices to improve their stocks. Through cutting costs and changing business practices, these companies have seen their stocks go up by immense amounts and the investors who jumped on board the stocks when they were low, are now smiling because of the huge gains. Buying low and selling high has paid off with these stocks.
Further Reading:
Worst Performing Stocks in past 12 months