Despite the recent ructions on the ALL Ordinaries (Index: ^AORD) (ASX: XAO), including yesterday's 1.4% slide, five companies have seen their share prices gain than 300% over the past 12 months. By comparison, the All Ordinaries has lost more than 10%.
It just goes to show that investors can still make a motza on the market, if they know where to look and hold onto their stocks for at least a year – no matter what the market does to the share prices.
Here are the five companies…
Ziptel Ltd (ASX: ZIP) share price has rocketed up 594% to $1.10. The company has developed a communications app that allows users on slow mobile networks (2G) to use video calls, send pictures, multi-media messages using only a small amount of data. Earlier this month, Ziptel surpassed 1 million installs and more than 800,000 active monthly users. And that was only Android users. An Apple iOS version ios due to be released on September 14, 2015. Revenues are growing and average revenue per user (ARPU) is also expected to increase.
Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) share price has soared 548% to $0.17. The miner is an emerging Tantalite producer, with a number of projects located in Western Australia's Pilbara region – more well known for its iron ore deposits. Pilbara Minerals recently received approval to commence construction and commissioning of its Tabba Tabba project and is expected to ship first product in September 2015. The company has a 5-year offtake agreement with Global Advanced Metals for tantalite, which is turned into tantalum. Tantalum is a highly corrosion resistant metal, mostly used in capacitors in mobile phones and other electronic equipment but also in medical implants and bone repair. It's a very rare product, fifteen times rarer than gold and currently fetches prices of around US$170 per kilogram, or US$170,000 per tonne. No wonder the shares have soared.
Alexium International Group Ltd (ASX: AJX) share price climbed 540% to $0.86. The company has developed a flame retardant treatment for synthetic fibres. The company has signed a number of contract with the US Defence sector as well as a major US bedding customer. Those aren't the only industries that could benefit from the product: automotive, home furnishings and furniture sectors, as well as outdoors for items such as tents and coverings. Revenues are still small – $415,000 – but rocketed up 59% in the 2015 financial year.
St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM) share price gained 360% to $0.57. The gold miner was at the bottom of a pit a year ago, with concerns over its Gold Ridge mine in the Solomon islands. The mine was finally sold to the Solomon Islands government for a nominal sum, relieving St Barbara of expensive repair work to the tailings storage facility. Operations at the mine were suspended in April 2014 after torrential rainfall. Add in record annual production from the company's Gwalia and Simberi mines at an all-in sustaining cost of $1,007 per ounce in financial year 2015, and St Barbara has truly turned the tables on lady luck.
Bellamy's Australia Ltd (ASX: BAL) share price put on 342% to reach $5.99. The baby formula producer is capitalising on strong demand for its products from China. Since China's baby formula scandal in 2008 when six infants died and 54,000 babies were hospitalised, Chinese consumers have been searching for high-quality baby and infant formula. In Australia, the product quality has seen the company grab 19% of the market share. Bellamy's has capitalised on that and has been reporting stonking revenue (up 156%) and profit growth (up 617%). That looks unlikely to stop anytime soon.
