Wall Street went through a minor panic attack on Wednesday, with investors sending major indexes down roughly 2% to add to Tuesday's losses. Some more poor economic data signaled that the U.S. economy might finally be faltering after a long bull run, and that has market participants trying to anticipate the end of the 10-year-old bull market. Even with the downward pressure, though, some stocks defied the odds and gained ground. Stars Group (TSG), Sibanye-Stillwater (SBSW -3.76%), and Zynex (ZYXI -0.83%) were among the top performers. Here's why they did so well.
Flutter bets big on Stars Group
Shares of Stars Group jumped 30% after the sports betting company got a merger offer from one of its largest peers. Flutter Entertainment, which operates a similar business in the U.K. that includes the once-dominant Party Poker website, offered to combine with Stars Group in a deal that would create the biggest global player in the industry. The $6 billion merger would give Stars Group investors 0.2253 shares of Flutter in exchange for their stock. Flutter's share price also climbed, and many gambling industry watchers believe that further consolidation is not only likely but necessary.
Image source: Getty Images.
Sibanye-Stillwater shines thanks to precious metals gains
Sibanye-Stillwater stock picked up 7% on a good day for the precious metals markets. The mining company benefited from the $25-per-ounce rise in gold prices to move above the $1,500 level. However, it also got a nice boost from a $32-per-ounce jump in palladium to record levels around $1,670. Sibanye-Stillwater has operational challenges in making the most of its mining opportunities. Yet the uncertainty in the stock market has some investors looking to gold and other precious metals as a safe haven, and that could help the company's prospects in the immediate future.
Zynex sees huge order growth
Finally, shares of Zynex climbed 11%. The medical technology company said that it saw 95% order growth in the third quarter of 2019 compared to the year-ago period. Zynex's non-invasive medical devices for treating pain management, cardiac monitoring, and various other functions saw order counts jump 30% just from three months ago. CEO Thomas Sandgaard attributed the rise to the company's expansion of its sales force that it's been implementing for a while now, and it's positioning its NexWave pain treatment device as a superior alternative to opioids. If customers keep finding that argument compelling, it could keep driving Zynex higher.
