In late morning trade the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) is on course to start the week with a decline. At the time of writing, the benchmark index is down 0.3% to 6,737.7 points.
Four shares that have not let that hold them back are listed below. Here's why they are charging higher:
PointsBet Holdings Ltd (ASX: PBH)
The PointsBet share price is up 3% to $12.37. This may have been driven by a note out of Bell Potter recently which named the sports betting company as a share to buy in 2021. According to the note, Bell Potter has placed a speculative buy and $15.10 price target on its shares. It notes that the company has a significant opportunity in the United States market, where it currently has partnerships in 12 US states with a combined population of 94 million.
Santos Ltd (ASX: STO)
The Santos share price is up 4% to $7.25. Investors have been buying the energy producer's shares after oil prices jumped to their highest levels since February of last year. On Friday Brent crude oil climbed 1.8% to US$55.35 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate crude futures settled 2.8% higher at US$52.24 per barrel. Both benchmarks recorded weekly gains of more than 6%.
Sayona Mining Ltd (ASX: SYA)
The Sayona Mining share price has rocketed 61% to 2.25 cents. Investors have been fighting to buy the Canada-based lithium miner's shares after it signed an agreement with Piedmont Lithium Ltd (ASX: PLL). That agreement sees Piedmont Lithium buy a stake in the company and sign up for at least 50% of Sayona Québec's future spodumene concentrate production.
Splitit Ltd (ASX: SPT)
The Splitit share price has jumped 9% to $1.41 after announcing an agreement with tech giant Google in Japan. In the coming weeks, customers purchasing Google's new 5G phone, the Pixel 5, or Nest devices from the Google Store, will be able to split their payments into equal monthly instalments through Splitit.
