Mark O’Donnell
Blackbull Markets Limited
The last two weeks haven't exactly been ideal for the major US indices. Since the end of August, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq 100 have been down 1.54%, 0.93%, and 0.51%, respectively. The decline in these indices is all the more striking as they have followed an impressive run of record highs and seemingly inexhaustible market bullishness.
In times like these, perhaps it is good to remind ourselves how far the indices have come in the year to date. If anything, reminiscing about the indices extraordinary gains in 2021 should help us contextualise the minor misfortune befalling the stocks and indices in September.
It may also be appropriate to remember that September has never been a great time for stocks. One example frequently quoted is that Since 1945, the S&P 500 has closed lower 55% of the time during September. More recent history has been kinder to the index, recording a 25% loss rate in four September since 2016.
It may be too soon to call September 2021 for the bears. There is still time for the market to turn things around. As we ride out the rest of the month, let's revisit some of the most significant share price gainers of US-listed companies thus far in the year. Bear in mind; some stock price gains may be the result of steep losses the year before or other anomalies in the market.
Biggest gainer: Past week
aTyr Pharma (NASDAQ: LIFE)
ATyr Pharma shares have risen 60.8% in the past week after it reported positive results in a trial of its lung disease (pulmonary sarcoidosis) medication. The Californian based Biotherapeutics Company share price rise is even more impressive from the vantage of a month, up by 81.7% in this time frame.
Notable mentions; Uranium Energy (NYSEAMERICAN: UEC) up by 26.6%, Aloca (NYSE: AA) up by 13.0%, First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR) up by 9.7%.
Biggest gainer: Past three months
Peabody Energy (NYSE: BTU)
ESG investors will be disheartened to hear the biggest gainer for the past 90 days has been Peabody Energy Corp. Peabody Energy is a 'coal producer', one of the largest in the world at that, with mining operations across the US and Australia. The Company has contracts to supply Coal to electricity generators, and steel manufactures around the globe.
Since August, the price of Coal has soared due to limited supply and improving demand from developing Asian nations. These factors led to improved finances for the Company, resulting in BTU rising by 83.6% since mid-June.
For interest sake, Coal is currently trading at $177.5 per metric ton, up from $40.40 per metric ton at the end of August.
Notable mentions: Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) up by 37.6%, Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ: AMD) up by 29.9%, and Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) up by 25.3%.
Biggest gainer: Year to date (YTD)
AMC Entertainment (NYSE: AMC)
Perhaps this was an obvious choice for Biggest Gainer since February 4 (the first trading day of 2021). AMC, up by 2,200%, after catching a second meme-stock wind. Its popularity as a short squeeze stock has risen to be perhaps equal to that of GameStop (NYSE: GME). It is arguably so because it is "cheaper" per stock and owning one whole AMC stock feels more satisfying than owning one-fourth of a GME.
Speaking of which, the only stock that could give AMC a run for its money is GameStop. Up by ~1,000%) YTD, GME has battled its way up to from US $17.25 to, as of writing, US $204.5 per share. Notable mentions: Veritiv (NYSE: VRTV) up by 329.1%, Dillard (NYSE: DDS) up by 250.5%, Macy's (NYSE: M) up by 89.9%.
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