Santos Ltd (ASX: STO), Ramsay Health Care Ltd (ASX: RHC), and AMP Ltd (ASX: AMP) shares have climbed to fresh annual highs in Wednesday trade as the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) swings into the green.
Here's what has happened, and what brokers tip next.
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Santos shares
The ASX energy shares have climbed over 2% to $8.74 at the time of writing, in what is the highest recorded share price for Santos since January 2020. Today's increase means the shares are now 42% higher for the year to date and 14% higher than 12 months ago.
It looks like the oil and gas major's shares are enjoying tailwinds from a climbing oil price. According to Trading Economics, crude oil is trading around US$104 per barrel on Wednesday. This is a retreat from a high of US$105 per barrel yesterday, but it still represents a 24% increase in the price of crude oil over the past month alone.
Prices are rising amid new drone attacks and ongoing conflict in the Middle East, which has restricted oil supply even further.
And investment bank Goldman Sachs said recently that it thinks crude oil could rise above US$120 if production remains well below pre-conflict levels.
Experts are bullish that Santos shares can keep climbing higher, too. TradingView data shows that all brokers have a strong buy rating on the stock. The $8.99 average target price implies around a 3% upside at the time of writing.
Ramsay Health Care shares
Ramsay Health shares are also up around 2% to a multi-year high of $54.64 at the time of writing. The share price flew higher in late August off the back of a healthcare-sector-wide rebound and the company's impressive FY26 results announcement.
Ramsay Health shares are now up around 58% for the year to date and 63% higher than 12 months ago.
For FY26, the company reported a 22.9% increase in its underlying net profit after tax (NPAT) and a 11.8% increase in its underlying EBIT. Revenue also climbed 4.2%. Shareholders also received a dividend increase, up 13.8% to 91 cents per share for the full-year FY26.
Looking ahead, Ramsay expects to report EBIT growth and further margin improvement in FY27, with ongoing focus on cost management, activity growth, and capital discipline.
The company is also moving ahead with plans to separate its 52.79% stake in Ramsay Santé, which owns hospitals across Europe.
But it looks like the experts want to see more evidence that the company can keep growing. TradingView data shows the majority of brokers have a hold rating, with the $51.49 average target price implying a downside of around 6%.
AMP shares
AMP shares are up around 0.5% to $2.51 at the time of writing on Wednesday. This is the highest share price AMP has traded at since November 2018. The shares are also up an impressive 37% year to date and 39% higher than a year ago.
Ongoing geopolitical tensions and concerns about Australia's inflation data weighed heavily on financial shares like AMP throughout the first half of the year.
But the diversified financial services company continues to post some strong financial results. In mid-July, it announced first-half NPAT guidance of $170 to $180 million, significantly higher than the $131 million reported for the same period last year. Investors rushed to buy the shares and sent the price flying 22% higher within a week.
Then, early last month, AMP posted its first-half FY26 results, including a 33% year-on-year increase in underlying NPAT to $174 million, an 8.2% year-on-year increase in assets under management (AUM), and a 33% increase in AMP's Platforms net cash flows.
Again, investors were thrilled, and the share price has continued climbing since the announcement.
TradingView data shows that the majority of brokers have a buy rating on AMP shares. But after such a strong rally recently, the average $2.49 target price now implies a downside of around 1%.
