34 stocks hit 52-week highs last week: Why Gold, Healthcare and Industrials are leading the way
Is the worst behind healthcare stocks? Are investors chasing defensive industrials?
Source: iStock
Mentioned
KEY POINTS
- 34 stocks with market cap > $300m hit 52-week high last week, mostly from gold, industrials, and healthcare sectors
- Gold stocks rallied as spot prices push through US$2,000
- Healthcare names like Cochlear, Nanosonics and Fisher & Paykel bottomed late last year. Is worst behind them?
Welcome back to the 52-week High Series where we review the performance of recent runners and why they're worth watching.
You can check out Market Index’s 52-week high scan here - which shows users which companies are clearing yearly highs on the given day.
To recap some of the research about why the 52-week high is a big deal:
The research: A thesis by Thomas J. George and Chuan-Yang Hwang found that the closer a stock is to its 52-week high, the stronger it performs in the subsequent period
The fundie: 1851 Capital CIO Chris Stott says his fund 'follows the data religiously' to help identify momentum and generate fresh ideas
The trader: US trader Mark Minervini says when you see a growing number of stocks in a particular industry making 52-week highs, this could be "an indication that a group advance is underway"
Stocks that hit 52-week high last week
Note: This list only refers to companies with a market cap of more than $300 million. The year-to-date refers to closing prices on Thursday, 13 April 2023.
There were 34 stocks that hit 52-week highs last week. There were quite a few names from sectors including gold, industrials and healthcare, which will be separated from the main list.
Ticker | Company | Sector | YTD |
|---|---|---|---|
REA | REA Group | Communication Services | 28.73% |
TLS | Telstra | Communication Services | 6.52% |
WES | Wesfarmers | Discretionary | 12.72% |
THL | Tourism Holdings | Discretionary | 12.35% |
WEB | Webjet | Discretionary | 18.12% |
STX | Strike Energy | Energy | 57.14% |
VEA | Viva Energy | Energy | 16.48% |
SDF | Steadfast | Financials | 9.32% |
SOL | Washington H Soul Pattinson | Financials | 14.35% |
LTR | Liontown Resources | Lithium | 106.82% |
A4N | Alpha HPA | Materials | 46.09% |
CHN | Chalice Mining | Materials | 26.19% |
SFR | Sandfire Resources | Materials | 27.76% |
TLG | Talga Group | Materials | 32.14% |
SVL | Silver Mines | Materials | 22.50% |
WOW | Woolworths | Staples | 16.42% |
DTL | Data#3 | Technology | 8.57% |
NXT | NextDC | Technology | 34.29% |
Gold stocks rally as spot prices push through US$2,000.
Ticker | Company | Sector | YTD |
|---|---|---|---|
BGL | Bellevue Gold | Gold | 31.42% |
DEG | De Grey Mining | Gold | 29.57% |
EMR | Emerald Resources | Gold | 42.62% |
NCM | Newcrest Mining | Gold | 43.76% |
NST | Northern Star Resources | Gold | 26.49% |
PRU | Perseus Mining | Gold | 15.64% |
RSG | Resolute Mining | Gold | 140.0% |
Does Industrials strength reflect a preference for reliable earnings?
Ticker | Company | Sector | YTD |
|---|---|---|---|
BXB | Brambles | Industrials | 14.75% |
LAU | Linsay Australia | Industrials | 20.70% |
LYL | Lycopodium | Industrials | 43.80% |
MMS | McMillan Shakespeare | Industrials | 13.91% |
REH | Reece Australia | Industrials | 25.37% |
Three larger cap healthcare names move out.
Ticker | Company | Sector | YTD |
|---|---|---|---|
4DX | 4D Medical | Healthcare | 27.00% |
COH | Cochlear | Healthcare | 22.67% |
CYC | Cyclopharm | Healthcare | 43.00% |
FPH | Fisher & Paykel | Healthcare | 16.73% |
NAN | Nanosonics | Healthcare | 23.78% |
Interesting Observations
Gold: Gold has rallied back above US$2,000 an ounce amid economic concerns, lower bond yields and a weaker US dollar. However, is the yellow metal setting up for a breakout or a tripe top? While gold has seen some spectacular rallies in the past three years, it's mostly been trading within the US$1,670 to US$2,070 range. It's interesting to see several emerging names like Ramelius, Perseus, De Grey and Emerald Resources outperform larger cap names.
Gold spot price (Source: TradingView)
Industrials: Small cap names like Lycopodium and Linsay have rallied quiet strongly this year, with shallow pullbacks. On the larger cap side of things, a household name like Brambles rallied 7.5% on the day of its half-year earnings on February 27 and its been trending higher ever since.
Of note, Citi was Buy rated on the stock with a $14.55 target price as of March 24. The note said "while we understand cautiousness around the macro, ironically we think the environment is actually becoming more favourable for Brambles."
Healthcare: Cochlear, Nanosonics and Fisher & Paykel all bottomed around October last year and now trending above yearly highs. The businesses have all been impacted by Covid, whether that be supply-chain related issues, labour shortages, lockdowns or cycling elevated sales. Does this breakout suggest that the worst is behind them?
Cochlear (blue), Nanosonics (red) and Fisher & Paykel (green)
Tech: It's interesting to see some quality tech names make an appearance on the 52-week highs list including Data#3, NextDC and Wisetech (hit 52-week highs the week before).
