Among the top 50 price gainers in the first half of this year that remained actively traded as of last Friday were Max’s Group (MAXS), Double Dragon Properties Corp. (DD), Nickel Asia Corp. (NIKL), Marcventures Holdings(MARC), Trans-Asia Oil and Energy Development Corp. (TA), First Gen Corp. (FGEN), Alsons Consolidated Resources (ACR), D&L Industries (DNL), Philex Mining Corp. (PX) and Island Information & Technology.
Among the top price losers in the first half but have remained actively traded were AgriNurture (ANI), Melco Crown (Philippines) Resorts Corp. (MCP), Greenergy Holdings Corp. (GREEN), Del Monte Pacific Ltd (DMPL) and Petron Corp. (PCOR).
MAXS shares gained by 170 percent during the period, with the closing price of P40.50 and beginning price of P15.00 per share.
Since then, however, MAXS shares had fallen 42.83 percent with a closing price of P22.75 per share last Friday.
Very close behind is DD. It was up 166.70 percent during the period with a closing price of P8 and beginning price of P3.00 per share. However, at P7.43 per share last Friday, DD was down 7 percent from its June closing price.
Based on the closing price of P33.80 and beginning price of P15.20 per share, NKIL shares gained by 117.11 percent during the period.
The price of NIKL continued to climb. As of last Friday, its shares closed at P41.60, up by another 23.07 percent.
Next is MARC. Its shares were up 76.95 percent during the period, with closing price of P5.22 and beginning price of P2.95 a share.
MARC’s share prices continued to climb. As of last Friday, it closed at P6.11 apiece—up by another 17 percent since last June.
Next is TA. Its shares were up 75.71 percent during the period, with a closing price of P2.46 per share and beginning price of P1.40. TA’s share price remained almost unchanged, closing at P2.40 per share last Friday.
FGEN followed with a price gain of 66.16 percent during the period, with a closing price of P21.70 per share and beginning price of P13.06. The price of FGEN shares gained by another 19.35 percent, ending at P25.90 last Friday.
Up 64.93 percent is ACR, with a closing price of P2.21 and beginning price of P1.34 per share during the period. ACR’s shares closed last Friday at P1.94, down 12.22 percent from its closing price in June.
First among the price losers was ANI. With a closing price of P3.98 and a beginning price of P5.30 per share, ANI’s shares were down 24.91 percent. With a closing price of P2.60 last Friday, ANI is down by another 34.67 percent.
MCP, a gaming stock, followed. Its shares lost 16.23 percent during the period, with a beginning price of P13.68 and closing price of P11.46 per share. MCP’s share price had recovered since then with a closing price of P15.00 last Friday.
Bottom-line spin
All of these stocks have good story lines. However, those that failed to sustain their gains up to last Friday, their prices were buoyed by expectations from their story lines.
The stocks that did well in the first six months and fared even better after June are those that produced solid results, based on the top 50 net income earners in the period.
NIKL was on 67th place in net earnings in 2013. Its net income grew 419.10 percent in the same period in 2014. It also advanced to 27th place in standings on net earnings. Its share price also rose higher to P41.60 apiece as of last Friday, and is forecasted by analysts to go higher before the end of the year.
FGEN is another. It was on 25th place in net income in 2013 and this year, it rose to 21st place as its net income rose 42.50 percent. Its stock price is expected to continue climbing.
Except for PCOR whose net income grew 118.70 percent in the period—and whose berth in the top 50 net income earners for the year rose to 32 this year from 52 last year—all price losers will probably continue to incur further losses.
The rise in MCP’s stock price is dependent on its gaming story. DMPL, on the other hand, still has to show solid results. ANI and GREEN may sustain further price losses as the Senate hearing continues.
(The writer is a licensed stockbroker of Eagle Equities Inc. You may reach the Market Rider at marketrider@inquirer.com.ph, densomera@msn.com or at www.kapitaltek.com.)