U.S. Pat. important indices are currently traded at the very highest level. Market concerns about the US-China trade war have been resolved … at least for the time being. The reference index rose more than 27% in 2019, on schedule for the highest annual percentage gain in six years.
A dovish Federal Reserve and especially encouraging US economic data have also helped bring Wall Street shares to record levels.
Although most of the focus was on the popular, mega-cap, FAANG technology stocks such as Apple (NASDAQ :), Amazon (NASDAQ :), Facebook (NASDAQ :), Netflix (NASDAQ :), Google parent Alphabet (NASDAQ 🙂 and Microsoft (NASDAQ :), we focused on three less carefully researched stocks, each of which performed significantly better than the wider market stalls.
Of course 2019 is not completely over yet, but these uber artists are still worth mentioning, because the trading volume is declining and the holidays, plus 2020, are looming.
1. Snap: + 174% so far in 2019
The parent company of the social media messaging app Snapchat, Snap (NYSE 🙂 made an impressive comeback after its tumultuous stock market debut in March 2017. Many traders wrote off the name because of the terrible performance in 2018, when it lost 62% of value.
The comeback of the company in 2019 is perhaps even more surprising.
The social media company, once regarded by many as dead in the water, has implemented a series of predictions in every quarter of this year. The platform grew again in user growth, with daily active users (DAU & # 39; s) rising in the third quarter to a record 210 million ever.
The monthly active user base (MAU) of the company is just over 500 million. Twitter (NYSE 🙂 has approximately 335 million users for comparison. In addition, Snap's total average revenue per user (ARPU) grew in the third quarter by 33% to $ 2.12, indicating that the company has improved its ability to further monetize its user base.
Snap shares have reached no less than 174% year-to-date (YTD), significantly better than the, as well as social media rivals Facebook, + 51% and Twitter, + 7%. The stock closed at $ 15.10 on Tuesday, giving it a market capitalization of $ 21.1 billion. The share price of Snap reached a low of $ 4.82 in December 2018.
2. Chipotle: + 92% so far in 2019
With its share price nearly doubled this year, Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE 🙂 is the best restaurant operator of 2019. Plus, this even happened while the industry was under pressure from increasing competition.
Burrito chain shares have risen an incredible 92% since the beginning of the year, when investors rewarded the company's efforts to win back customers back to a food safety scandal in 2015. The stock ended yesterday $ 832.05, making it a market capitalization of $ 23.1 billion. It reached a record high of $ 857.90 on September 9.
Chipotle for all four periods of the year, as Chief Executive Officer Brian Niccol's mobile ordering options and promotional strategies helped the global food chain to come out of the shadow of a series of food safety scares that ravaged it more than three years ago. The company based in Newport Beach, California, achieved its highest revenue growth at established restaurants in more than two years in the second quarter, driven by Niccol's decision to focus on food delivery and partner with Doordash and Postmates services.
Niccol, the former head of Taco Bell, who was brought on board in February 2018, also increased advertising with an emphasis on the freshness of the ingredients that the chain contained in its tacos and burritos. as well as the addition of healthier meal options. Furthermore, only online choices such as & # 39; Lifestyle Bowls & # 39 ;, healthier meals with paleo, keto and vegan salads also attracted more customers.
3. Okta: so far + 80% in 2019
Okta (NASDAQ 🙂 is one of the fastest growing companies in the booming, cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) sector. The San Francisco-based cyber security company managed to prevent the downturn that hit the rest of the group halfway through the year, with an almost double price.
Shares rose 80% in 2019, thanks to the large demand from large companies for cloud-based identity and access management software. The stock amounted to $ 114.10 last night and valued the company at around $ 13.8 billion.
Third quarter results, released on December 5, came in, with revenues and earnings that were both analyst estimates. Customers with annual contracts with a value of more than $ 100,000 jumped 41% in the fiscal third quarter to 1,325, an increase from 937 in the same period a year earlier. In addition, subscription revenue increased by 48% Y-o-Y to $ 144.5 million, while billing, a metric revenue growth, increased by 42% to $ 175.6 million.
Looking ahead, Okta strengthened its outlook for next year, indicating that the explosive growth of the company is by no means over. It now expects tax revenues for 2020 to be between $ 574 million and $ 575 million, representing a growth of 44% Y-o-Y. Previously, management had expected full year revenue to increase by 40% to 41% Y-o-Y.
