LONDON -- After another positive week last week, the FTSE 100 (INDEX: ^FTSE), at a level of 5,922, is just 67 points short of breaching its 52-week high of 5,989 set in March. The index has come close a number of times over the past few months, but just one more good week might be all it needs to finally make it.
We have some impressive highfliers among the individual constituents of the various FTSE indexes, too. Here are three hitting new highs.
Thomas Cook (TCG +0.00%)
Thomas Cook Group shares are soaring, putting on a further 16% today to hit another in a series of 52-week highs, today reaching 42 pence. That represents a threefold rise in the price since its 2012 low of 12.7 pence in February.
Thomas Cook's recovery has been impressive, after the firm barely managed to save itself by getting new banking facilities in the nick of time. After two years of big losses, the high-street travel firm is expected to be back in profit in the year to September 2013
BBA (BBA +0.00%)
BBA Aviation has been climbing of late, and its shares reached a new 12-month high today of 224 pence, taking the price up a third from the year's low of 168 pence back in January.
Forecasts suggest a small earnings fall for this year, with the shares on a price-to-earnings ratio of 13, with a 4% dividend yield expected. For 2013 forecasts, that improves to 12 and 4.2%, respectively.
Delcam (LSE: DLC)
Delcam shares are up 65% since a year ago, having hit a new high of 888 pence today. The AIM-listed company, which develops advanced CAD/CAM software for the manufacturing industry, has come through a few flat years to post nice growth in earnings for 2010 and 2011, and there is further growth forecast by the City for this year and next.
The shares are on a slightly toppy P/E of over more than 17 for this year, falling to 16 for next year, but compared with the prices growth shares reach during better economic times, today's price might still turn out to be a bargain.
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