Shares of Netflix Inc rallied on Monday, with the year’s best-performing FAANG stock on track to close out the year on a positive note.
Shares gained as much as 5.5 percent in their fourth-straight daily advance, a period over which they have risen more than 14 percent.
The S&P 500 rose about 6 percent over the same period.
Photo: Bloomberg
While the video-streaming company is down more than 30 percent from its most recent record in June, Netflix remained on track for a gain of nearly 40 percent last year.
The rally makes Netflix the year’s top performer among the so-called FAANG group of technology and Internet stocks that also includes Facebook Inc, Apple Inc, Amazon.com Inc and Google parent Alphabet Inc.
Facebook is the worst performer of the group, down more than 25 percent last year.
Of the five, only Amazon is set to join Netflix by ending the year in positive territory, with a gain of almost 30 percent.
Each of the components has been extremely volatile, with steep moves in both directions, but the trend in the fourth quarter was generally lower.
The group has come under pressure as investors reassess the growth prospects and valuations of the long-time market leaders.
Company-specific issues have also weighed on the stocks, with Facebook struggling amid a number of controversies, Apple seeing signs of weaker iPhone demand and both Amazon and Alphabet reporting sales that missed analyst estimates in their most recent quarter.
The performance of FAANG stocks on Monday mirrored their performance throughout the year: Facebook was the weakest, down about 2 percent. Amazon was behind Netflix with a gain of about 2 percent. Apple was slightly higher on the day, while Alphabet was down less than 1 percent.
Meanwhile, Asian equities lost about US$5 trillion in value last year, with the benchmark poised for its worst annual decline since 2011.
Here are the top Asian stock winners and losers of the year:
Shares of Pabrik Kertas Tjiwi Kimia Tbk grew 280 percent and PT Indah Kiat Pulp & Paper Corp advanced 114 percent, thanks to demand for packaging from the booming global online retail scene.
Shares of Fila Korea Ltd surged 228 percent as they hit a record in November after the company’s third-quarter operating profit doubled year-on-year.
Shares of Yihai International Holding Ltd (頤海國際) increased 156 percent after piggybacking off the rally in Haidilao International Holding Ltd (海底撈), which became Asia’s biggest listed restaurant operator after its Hong Kong initial public offering.
Shares of Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co rose 146 percent, as strong orders and other signs of turnaround in the sector across the region gave the stock a boost.
Shares of Meitu Inc (美圖) fell 80 percent amid data privacy concerns and a profit warning.
Shares of Brilliance China Automotive Holdings Ltd (華晨中國汽車) dropped 72 percent, after it agreed to give BMW AG control of their joint venture, diminishing its exposure to future growth in the world’s largest auto market.
Shares of Sharp Corp declined 72 percent and AAC Technologies Holdings Inc (瑞聲) slumped 67 percent, as signs of a potential slowdown in demand for Apple Inc’s iPhones and use of rival products weighed on their shares.
Shares of Vodafone Idea Ltd retreated 65 percent as competition from billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd has weighed on the stock.
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