In afternoon trade the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) has dropped 0.4% to 5,734 points. Investors appear to be in a cautious mood ahead of tomorrow's Dutch election and a potential rate hike in the United States overnight on Thursday.
But despite the index dropping lower, four shares in particular have defied the market and climbed higher today. Here's why:
The Afterpay Holdings Ltd (ASX: AFY) share price has jumped 5% to $2.31 after the payments company announced that it had signed a two-year contract with department store operator Myer Holdings Ltd (ASX: MYR). The deal will see Afterpay's buy now, receive now, pay later service rolled out on Myer's online store from the fourth quarter of FY 2017.
The Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) share price has surged 5% higher to $6.51 after iron prices rebounded strongly this week. The rebound appears to have been triggered by a report by Reuters that revealed that the Dalian Exchange plans to slash transaction fees for near-month iron ore contracts by as much as 90%. Furthermore, the exchange intends to open up the contracts to foreign traders.
The Stemcell United Ltd (ASX: SCU) share price has rocketed 22% to 50 cents today. The medicine plant extract business saw its share price rise almost 3,000% yesterday after announcing plans to pursue opportunities in the medical cannabis sector. This certainly looks to be as speculative as they come. So it's probably best giving it a wide berth.
The WiseTech Global Ltd (ASX: WTC) share price is up 4.5% to $5.42 despite there being no news out of the provider of software solutions to the logistics industry. Although its shares are a little on the expensive side, I think this exciting company's bright future goes some way to justifying the premium. In its recent half-year results the company grew its top line by 46% to $71.1 million.
