Why October has been a huge month for the ASX

October has been a huge month for the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) which is up 3% over the last month, compared to a decline of 2.44% over the previous 6 months.

Here's a recap of the top stocks in October:

• The a2 Milk Company Ltd (Australia) (ASX: A2M) share price is up 24% in October and reached an all-time high of $7.67 last Friday. Investors were encouraged by the insatiable demand for its infant formula in the China market which resulted in sales into China rising from $38.2 million to $88.9 million, and EBITDA from $9.2 million to $32.7 million in FY 2017. The company has also  gained CFDA approval to continue selling its products in the market from January 1 2018 when regulations change.

• The Bellamy's Australia Ltd (ASX: BAL) share price was up 63% in October thanks to strong demand for Australian infant formula from Chinese consumers and daigou shoppers.

• The Blackmores Limited (ASX: BKL) share price is up 27% in October with leading brokers such as  JP Morgan expecting Blackmores to deliver $4.60 in earnings per share this year. If achieved, this would translate to an impressive year-on-year earnings growth of over 35%.

• The Praemium Ltd (ASX: PPS) share price is up  41% in October after buyer sentiment continued to gain momentum off the back of an announcement earlier in the month that the company achieved record platform inflows and funds under administration for the recent quarter.  

• The Freelancer Ltd (ASX: FLN) share price was up 30% in October as the share price recovered from previous 52-week lows. Investors were encouraged as the company announced positive news in relation to its recently acquired US-based Escrow.com business. The company released an investor presentation outlining the details for an open Application Interface (API) allowing any online businesses that manage transactions to integrate escrow payment services within their online marketplace.

• The Brainchip Holdings Ltd (ASX: BRN) share price was up 33% in October after the company announced that it has shipped its first BrainChip Accelerator card to a major European automobile manufacturer.

• The Vocus Group Ltd (ASX: VOC) share price was up 13% in October after the group  announced that the board had decided to put its Vocus New Zealand consumer-internet business up for sale and use the proceeds to pay off its debts. The  company also revealed that it had "20+ live prospects" in terms of revenue-generating customers for the Australia Singapore Cable.

• The Big Un Ltd (ASX: BIG)  share price is up 56% in October after it announced the development of a dedicated Big Review TV channel available on Apple TV for launch next month. Management believes this will further drive revenue across its business model. Furthermore, it plans to develop similar dedicated Android channels early next year.