Today we're going to take a look at 15 star performers that have crushed the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO) in the past month, but first here's a summary of the state of the (economic) nation.
Construction activity eases: Construction work done in the December quarter fell by 3.6 per cent, driven by a 9.5 per cent slump in engineering work. Residential work lifted by 2.8 per cent to record highs while commercial building rose 2.5 per cent.
Building inflation: Building inflation rose by 1.1 per cent in the December quarter, the biggest quarterly gain in seven years. The annual rate of construction inflation rose from 1 per cent to 1.9 per cent – matching the fastest annual growth rate in four years.
Slow wage growth: The wage price index rose by 0.5 per cent in the December quarter, after a 0.6 per cent rise in the September quarter. Annual wage growth eased from 2.3 per cent to a record (18-year) low of 2.2 per cent.
S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX: XJO): The ASX200 has gone sideways for the past month. The good news is that 15 shares have beaten the index by a minimum of 10% in February. If you're a growth style investor, then these 15 companies require a closer look:
| Company | 1 month performance | |
| 1 | Saracen Mineral Holdings Limited (ASX: SAR) | 44.5% |
| 2 | Anglogold Ashanti Limited (ASX: AGG) | 39.8% |
| 3 | Beach Energy Limited (ASX: BPT) | 33.8% |
| 4 | Whitehaven Coal Limited (ASX: WHC) | 24.1% |
| 5 | IDP Education Pty Ltd (ASX: IEL) | 24% |
| 6 | Pacific Brands Limited (ASX: PBG) | 22% |
| 7 | Altium Limited (ASX: ALU) | 21% |
| 8 | Sandfire Resources NL (ASX: SFR) | 16.3% |
| 9 | Mesoblast Limited (ASX: MSB) | 18.2% |
| 10 | St Barbara Ltd (ASX: SBM) | 12.5% |
| 11 | GWA Group Limited (ASX: GWA) | 16.4% |
| 12 | Nuplex Industries Ltd (ASX: NPX) | 14.1% |
| 13 | Ainsworth Game Technology Limited (ASX: AGI) | 14.1% |
| 14 | Syrah Resources Ltd (ASX: SYR) | 10.3% |
| 15 | Freedom Foods Group Ltd (ASX: FNP) | 10.3% |
(Source:Commsec)
Saracen Mineral
Saracen is a gold miner with a strong financial position and excellent infrastructure situated in the North Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia.
Anglogold Ashanti Limited
AngloGold Ashanti is a gold miner that holds a portfolio of operations and projects on four continents.
Beach Energy Limited
Beach Energy is an oil and gas company with tenements in Australia, Tanzania, New Zealand and Romania. Currently, the flagship operations are located in the Cooper/Eromanga Basins and Egypt.
Whitehaven Coal
Whitehaven Coal is a coal miner, with assets including the Werris Creek Mine, the Narrabri Mine, the Maules Creek Project and other projects.
IDP Education Limited
IDP Education provides international student placement services and high-stakes English language testing services. It also owns and operates English language schools in South East Asia.
Pacific Brands Limited
Pacific Brands is a consumer products company. Its best known brands are Bonds, Berlei, Jockey, Explorer and Hosiery.
Altium Limited
Altium is a computer software designer. The company's products include the Altium designer application, a web-based portal helping professional electronics designers connect with people and devices.
Sandfire Resources
Sandfire is a copper miner which owns the DeGrussa Copper-Gold Mine, located 900km north of Perth in Western Australia.
Mesoblast Limited
Mesoblast develops biological products for regenerative medicine. Its key focus is research and development of adult Mesenchymal Precursor Cells (MPCs), Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs), Dental Pulp cells and Adipose cells.
St Barbara
St Barbara is a gold miner with mines in Western Australia and Papua New Guinea.
GWA International
GWA supplies building fixtures and fittings to households and commercial premises.
Nuplex Industries Limited
Nuplex produces resins and additives used in the formulation of surface coatings for consumer and industrial goods.
Ainsworth Game Technologies Limited
Ainsworth designs gaming machines and other related equipment and services.
Syrah Resources
Syrah is a graphite mining company with assets located in south east Africa and Australia. Its flagship project is the Balama Graphite Project.
Freedom Foods Group Limited
Freedom Foods provides a range of products for consumers requiring a solution to specific dietary or medical conditions.
