In afternoon trade the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) is down a disappointing 0.5% to 5,722 points.
Four shares that have defied the market and climbed notably higher are listed below. Here's why they have started the week with strong gains:
The Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) share price has climbed 7% to 66.5 cents after the oil and gas producer announced an underlying net profit after tax of $161.7 million. This is a whopping 353% increase on last year's result and came courtesy of higher sales revenue and lower total cost of sales. While not my first pick in the industry, if oil prices continue to improve it could be one to watch.
The Bubs Australia Ltd (ASX: BUB) share price is up a further 9% to 78.5 cents despite there being no news out of the infant formula and baby food company. Incredibly, this latest gain means that the Bubs share price has gained almost 180% in just 30 days.
The Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) share price is up 6% to $5.84 after the iron ore producer announced a full-year net profit after tax of US$2.1 billion. Cash at the end of the financial year stood at US$1.8 billion, with net gearing reduced to just 21% following an additional US$2.7 billion in debt repayments during the year.
The G8 Education Ltd (ASX: GEM) share price has climbed almost 7% to $3.98 after the childcare centre operator announced its half-year results. G8 Education delivered impressive net profit after tax growth of 23% to $30 million, despite revenue rising just 2.1% to $368 million. Overall I felt this was a solid result and believe it is worth a look at the current share price.
