The month of August was a disappointing one for the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO). The benchmark index dropped 2.3% during the month, finishing down at just 5,433 points.
But if you think that was a bad performance, spare a thought for the shareholders of these four shares:
Acrux Limited (ASX: ACR)
The shares of this pharmaceutical company dropped by a massive 49% in August following an announcement that a US court ruled that its Axiron testosterone treatment patents are not valid and therefore would not be infringed by generic competitors. As Axiron contributed 84% of Acrux's total half year sales, this is clearly a disaster for the company. Management expects the ruling will cause a material decline in Axiron's sales and the royalties it receives from them.
G8 Education Ltd (ASX: GEM)
The leading childcare operator's share price dropped 20% in August after a disappointing half year result. G8 Education reported a 12% drop in statutory net profit after tax to $25 million as a result of additional borrowing costs due to early debt repayment. Unfortunately opinion is largely divided on the company and its future prospects. Some investors see it as a value trap, whereas others see it as a great source of income thanks to its forecast full year fully franked 7.9% dividend.
Monadelphous Group Limited (ASX: MND)
The share price of this multi-disciplinary engineering company fell 18% in August after its full year results revealed the full impact falling commodity prices were having on its business. In FY 2016 revenue fell 26.8% to $1.4 billion and net profit after tax fell 36.7% to $67 million. The poor performance was driven almost entirely by its Engineering Construction segment which posted a 39.2% drop in segment revenue to $757.6 million.
Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST)
The leading gold producer's shares dropped 23% in August despite releasing full year results which revealed a 65% jump in net profit after tax to $151 million. Most of Australia's gold producers have been on the decline recently following drops in the gold price and a subdued outlook for the precious metal. Unfortunately with many believing the US Federal Reserve could be on the verge of raising interest rates, these declines could yet extend into September.
