The S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AXJO) (ASX:XJO) is trading sharply lower today thanks to negative offshore leads and a fall in commodity prices overnight.
The gold and mining sectors are under the most pressure today, although every ASX sector is currently trading in negative territory.
Four shares that have been able to buck today's trend, however, include:
Vita Group Limited (ASX: VTG)
Shares of Vita Group have soared by more than 15% to $5.10 today after the telecommunications retailer posted another impressive full year profit result. The company's Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) branded stores continued to deliver superior growth and this helped to increase revenues and profits by 19% and 43%, respectively. Vita Group also declared a final dividend of 8.21 cents per share to bring the full year dividend to 13.97 cents per share. Interestingly, brave investors could have picked up the shares for $3.81 just two days ago.
Harvey Norman Holdings Limited (ASX: HVN)
Harvey Norman shares have surged more than 6% today after the retailer posted a strong full year result. Net profit after tax (NPAT) increased by 30% thanks to strong like-for-like sales growth and gains made on property revaluations. Harvey Norman has clearly benefited from the buoyant property market domestically, but pleasingly for investors, also recorded strong sales growth abroad. The retailer also confirmed that the strong sales growth had continued into FY17 and this has also helped to boost investor sentiment today.
Surfstitch Group Ltd (ASX: SRF)
Surfstitch shares are rebounding today following a savage sell-off yesterday where they lost around 50% of their value. It appears bargain hunters are stepping up to the plate today, driving the shares higher by around 25% to 13 cents per share. The online clothing company disappointed investors again yesterday with a massive full year loss and another poor trading outlook that is expected to generate another big loss for the company in FY17. Even with today's bounce in the share price, Surfstitch shares have still lost around 93% of their value over the past 12 months.
Ramsay Health Care Limited (ASX: RHC)
Following on from a strong day yesterday, Ramsay Health Care shares have put in another strong performance today, rising to a new all-time high of $82.99. The private hospital operator delivered better-than-expected earnings yesterday and guided for another strong 12 months ahead with earnings per share growth of 10-12%. Although this seems like a modest target, Ramsay Health Care has a history of upgrading its earnings throughout the year. Investors are also likely to be cheering the company's strategic move to open up local community pharmacies which would provide an additional revenue stream for the hospital giant.
