Stocks moved lower last week, but the boo birds didn't get in the way of some high water mark parties. More than 1,050 stocks on the three major domestic exchanges notched fresh 52-week highs this past week, and some of the names will surprise you.
Sirius XM Radio (SIRI), Virgin Galactic (SPCE -5.47%), and Zoom Video (ZM 0.05%) are among the names that scored their highs trading prices in more than a year. Let's see what made each stock tick this week.
Image source: Sirius XM Holdings.
Sirius XM Radio
One of the biggest winners over the past decade is none other than the country's satellite radio monopoly. The stock is nearly a 145-bagger since bottoming out this month 11 years ago. Sirius XM has been a consistent winner for investors, closing higher for 11 consecutive years. It's naturally also trading comfortably higher in 2020.
It's still surprising to see Sirius XM at the top of its game because it warned earlier this month that top-line growth would slow to just below 4% in 2020, its weakest gains as a public company. The fresh highs also come in a climate with new auto sales declining, a potential problem since car sales remain Sirius XM's top lead generator.
Sirius XM stock did trade briefly higher in the springtime of 2018, but Thursday's high of $7.40 is the peak over the past year.
Virgin Galactic
It's fitting that a nascent play in space tourism has been a rocket stock this year. Virgin Atlantic has soared 293% so far in 2020, and that's with a swift pullback since hitting an all-time high on Thursday.
Virgin Galactic is competing against SpaceX and Blue Origin to make space travel a reality, and for now it's starting to take deposits for folks willing to pay $250,000 for a ride 50 miles into the sky. The first flights should being taking off later this year.
Virgin Galactic is going to be a volatile stock. SpaceX and Blue Origin aren't public, so it's the only pure play on space tourism. A thin float is only going to make the price swing even more.
Is a company with limited near-term revenue prospects worth appreciating from a little more than $2 billion at the beginning of 2020 to more than $6 billion less than two months later? SpaceX is a perfect illustration of the big rewards and big risks that come with Investing in IPOs.
Zoom Video
The fast-growing provider of videoconferencing services is another stock that hit a new high on Thursday after going public last year. Zoom's popularity is expanding rapidly, and revenue soared 85% in the third quarter. It reports fresh financials next week.
Zoom's surge ahead of earnings is encouraging, but there could be another factor pushing the shares higher. Zoom Video is seen by many as a play on the novel coronavirus. Companies have been scaling back from business travel and bowing out of overseas industry conferences. Teleconferencing is going to become even more popular as folks stay closer to home, making Zoom Video a winner despite its seemingly overvalued shares.
