Over the last 12 months the S&P/ASX 200 index has carved out a gain of approximately 5.9% excluding dividends.
If you include dividends into the equation, this return stretches to approximately 9.9%.
Whilst this is undoubtedly a fantastic return, it pales in comparison to some of the gains that have been made on the index.
The three shares listed below, for example, have more than doubled in value over the period. Here's why:
The Afterpay Touch Group Ltd (ASX: APT) share price has been an impressive performer over the last 12 months, rising a sizeable 190%. This strong share price gain is largely the result of the company's successful expansion into the United States. The Afterpay platform has gone down incredibly well with U.S. consumers, leading to strong customer and sales growth. In addition to this, Afterpay has now launched into the UK market, which is the third biggest retail market after the U.S. and China. Whilst it is still early days there, investors appear confident that it will be able to replicate its ANZ and U.S. success in this key market and drive further strong sales growth.
The Appen Ltd (ASX: APX) share price has been in sensational form again over the last 12 months. During this time the shares of the global leader in the development of high-quality, human annotated datasets for machine learning and artificial intelligence have gained a massive 131%. Investors have been fighting to get hold of Appen's shares after it delivered more strong growth in FY 2018. For the 12 months ended December 31, Appen posted a 153% increase in underlying EBITDA to $71.3 million thanks to its Leapforce acquisition, the accelerating AI market, and the high and growing demand for quality training data. With the growth of the AI market showing no signs of slowing, more strong EBITDA growth is expected in FY 2019.
The Nearmap Ltd (ASX: NEA) share price has been the best performer on the ASX 200 over the last 12 months with a stunning gain of 208%. The aerial imagery technology and location data company has caught the eye of investors this year after its successful expansion into the United States led to further strong growth. In the first half of FY 2019 Nearmap posted revenue of $36.3 million, up 46% on the prior corresponding period. It also reported a sizeable 123% increase in total subscriber lifetime value to $1.07 billion. With the company looking at expanding into new markets and launching new products this week, it looks well-placed to continue this strong growth in the second half and into FY 2020.
