It hasn't been a great start to the week for investors with the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX:XJO) losing 0.4% to 5,230 points.
Despite major weakness in the financial sector, there have been quite a few stocks firmly in positive territory today including:
Slater & Gordon Limited (ASX: SGH)
The embattled law firm is one of today's biggest movers following the news that it has finally reached an agreement with its lenders to restructure its massive debt burden. More than 58 million shares had been traded at the time of writing with the shares more than doubling in value to 61 cents per share. The new agreement provides Slater & Gordon with more breathing space as its first tranche of repayments will not be due until May 2018. Despite today's market reaction, the company remains in a very precarious financial position and its long term future still remains very uncertain.
Even with today's gains, shares of Slater & Gordon have lost more than 90% over the past 12 months.
EVOLUTION FPO (ASX: EVO)
The gold sector is one of the shining lights today with Evolution Mining leading the way with a gain of nearly 9%. The price of gold rallied strongly last week following the US Federal Reserve's decision to keep rates on hold again. This decision, combined with the weakness in the Australian dollar has seen the gold price top more than $1,700 in Australian dollar terms – well above the cost of production for most gold miners.
Shares of Evolution Mining have gained more than 117% over the past 12 months.
Vitaco Holdings Ltd (ASX: VIT)
Shares of Vitaco have enjoyed back-to-back days of strong gains with the shares adding more than 6.7% today to trade at $1.75. The shares enjoyed a strong rally on Friday after the company provided the market with a positive operational update. Along with appointing a dedicated General Manager for its China business, Vitaco also announced it has launched a range of protein bars with Boots in the United Kingdom. This may present a significant opportunity for the company as Boots is one of the world's largest pharmacy chains. Vitaco also confirmed that its recently acquired Musashi nutritional business has now been fully integrated and is operating to expectations.
Vitaco has been listed since September 2015, but has lost more than 27% of its value since listing.
Yowie Group Ltd (ASX: YOW)
Yowie shares have gained more than 5% today following an announcement that the company has signed a three-year licensing agreement to manufacture and distribute chocolate candy for SpacePop – a new US based music and fashion-driven brand created to appeal to girls aged 7-12. Although the brand has yet to be launched, this new agreement will be another avenue for Yowie to expand its appeal to another category in the huge US market. Today's positive news comes on the back of last week's announcement that Yowie has become the number one selling novelty candy item in the US.
Yowie shares have gained more than 7% over the past 12 months.
