LONDON -- The FTSE 100 (INDEX: ^FTSE) is down 39 points to 5,854 points as I write, having remained around last week's six-month high yesterday. Some put it down to profit-taking, while others think it's jitters regarding China. But those are really just stab-in-the-dark guesses, which Foolish investors don't really care about.

And even if the Footsie is down, individual companies in the indexes are heading up. Here are three set to beat the FTSE today.

Condor Gold (CNR 0.31%)
Small-cap gold explorer Condor Gold got a nice boost this morning, gaining 10% to 195 pence, after its latest resource update on its La India Project in Nicaragua beat expectations. The company reported a CIM compliant mineral resource of 2.4 million ounces of gold at 4.6 grams per tonne, which represents a 46% increase, far exceeding earlier estimates.

Chairman and chief executive Mark Childs said, "I am particularly pleased that the open pit resource contains 534,000 oz gold at 3.9 g/t in the Indicated category as this provides the Company with a higher degree of certainty that La India Project can be fast tracked toward production and due to the high gold grade should be attractive from an economic perspective."

Galliford Try (GFRD -0.83%)
Builders have been met with mixed market reactions in this reporting season, but Galliford Try pleased the punters today with full-year results showing a 17% increase in revenue and an 80% rise in pre-tax profit. With earnings per share up 89%, the dividend was boosted by 88% to 30 pence per share for a 4.5% yield. The shares rose a modest 1.7% to 684 pence, but that's a new high this year, having gained more than 50% since 12 months ago.

Forecasts suggest a further dividend rise next year to 5.2%, and that's looking more confident today.

Blinkx (LSE: BLNX.L)
Shares in video search experts Blinkx gained 1.4% to reach 63.4 pence today after the firm announced the release of an open beta of the next generation of its flagship product, blinkx.com.

That's not a massive jump in the price, but it pleases me because Blinkx is a member of our Beginners' Portfolio, and this news represents a small but important step in the company's technological progress. Financially, the year to March 2013 should be down, but there are good forecasts for 2014 -- though it's still very early days yet.

If the uncertainty and volatility of small-cap technologists scares you, investing in safe, dividend-paying shares the Neil Woodford way is a good alternative. The free Motley Fool report "8 Shares Held By Britain's Super Investor" takes a look at some of his major holdings. Click here to get your free copy while it's still available.

Or, if you prefer the oil and gas sector as a place for your cash, the latest Motley Fool report, "How To Unearth Great Oil & Gas Shares," is just for you. It's free for a limited time, so click here to get your personal copy.

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Alan does not own any shares mentioned in this article.