Fifteen companies with US$1 billion-plus market caps bagged stock gains above 300 per cent in 2013, all but two of them tech and drug stocks.Four solar stocks made this list, led by Canadian Solar, up 777 per cent. The others: SunPower, up 431 per cent; SolarCity, up 376 per cent; and SunEdison up 302 per cent.Solar's progress was partly an industry recovery story–and that could continue into 2014.SunPower, with solar developments like this one in California, was a 2013 leader, with its stock rising 431 per cent.
IBD's Energy-Solar industry group ranks No 1 of the 197 groups tracked. The 20-company group jumped 168 per cent in 2013, while the S&P 500 gained 29.6 per cent and the Nasdaq 38.3 per cent. Canadian Solar, SunPower and SolarCity hold IBD Composite Ratings of at least 86."We saw solar becoming competitive with fossil fuels in over half the world, so new markets opened up,"Kallo said. "So we saw the beginnings of solar being a viable resource for electricity production, and that will continue into 2014."
US solar installations are expected to rise at a compound annual rate near 30 per cent the next three years, from about 3.3 gigawatts in 2013 to more than 9 GW in 2016, Cowen and Company analyst Rob Stone said in a research note last week.Drugmakers Lannett Company, Acadia Pharmaceuticals, Keryx Biopharmaceuticals and Puma Biotechnology also made the list of top big-stock gainers for 2013, with growth ranging from 394 per cent to 567 per cent.
Lannett makes generic versions of branded pharmaceuticals, and has guided 2014 revenue above analysts' estimates. It sports a highest-possible IBD CR of 99. None of the others has a CR above 60.
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