Ten companies finished firmer on Friday, bucking an overall market pessimism, over a series of catalysts sparking buying appetite.
Wall Street’s main indices all finished in the red territory, with the Dow Jones down by 0.32 percent, the S&P 500 dropped 0.29 percent, and the Nasdaq down 0.50 percent.
In this article, let’s take a look at which companies defied broader market pessimism and explore the reasons behind their growth.
Friday’s top advancers only considered the stocks with at least $2 billion in market capitalization and $5 million in daily trading volume.
A person with stock market data on a laptop. Photo by Anna Nekrashevich on Pexels
10. TAL Education Group (NYSE:TAL)
China-based TAL Education rose for a second day on Friday, ending the day up by 5.6 percent at $11.69 apiece as investors bought up positions after posting double-digit growth in its earnings performance in the past quarter of the year.
According to the company, revenues surged by 62.4 percent in the third quarter of fiscal year 2025 to end at $606.4 million as against the $373.5 million reported year-on-year.
The strong revenues bolstered the company’s swing to profitability, with a net income of $38.6 million as against a net loss of $1.9 million in the same period last year.
Operating loss also narrowed by 81 percent to $1.9 million from $10.2 million year-on-year.
“We achieved healthy year-on-year revenue growth this quarter. Our AI learning devices remained one of our faster-growing business lines and received encouraging user feedback and market recognition,” said TAL Education President and Chief Finance Officer Alex Peng.
9. Cipher Mining Inc. (NASDAQ:CIFR)
Shares of Cipher Mining rallied for a third day on Friday, adding 6.69 percent to its valuation to end at $5.9 apiece. Being a Bitcoin mining firm, the rally in its prices was in line with the overall increase in Bitcoin prices, which at the time of writing was already at $104,832 apiece.
Since President Donald Trump signaled his plans to make cryptocurrency a national priority, Bitcoin’s share prices already marked a 12.16-percent increase year-to-date, with the optimism creating a ripple effect for Bitcoin miners.
Additionally, investors bought up shares in Cipher Mining after it earned a rating upgrade from an investment banking firm over renewed hopes that Trump will establish a strategic Bitcoin reserve in the US.
Last Tuesday, Needham & Company LLC upgraded its price target for Cipher Mining to $7.5 apiece and a “buy” rating, signaling confidence in the company.
8. IREN Ltd. (NASDAQ:IREN)
IREN Ltd. ended Friday’s trading in the green territory, growing by 8.47 percent to finish at $13.32 apiece in line with the rally in Bitcoin prices.
Despite the lack of mention of the cryptocurrency industry during President Donald Trump’s inauguration, investors remained hopeful that the company, along with its Bitcoin mining counterparts, will benefit from a long-term boost should the government already decide to pull the trigger.
Prior to his inauguration, Trump had already signaled that he would release an executive order that would make cryptocurrency a national priority, an asset that even his family is directly invested in.
In other news, IREN plans to raise as much as $1 billion from a follow-on offer to fund its Bitcoin mining expansion program. The fundraising program was in line with its plan to increase its capacity to 57 EH/s by the second half of the year, with 50 EH/s targeted in the first half of the year.
7. Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO)
Pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk grew its share prices by 7.13 percent to finish at $622.4 per share following news that its latest clinical trial for a weight loss drug achieved strong results.
For 36 weeks of testing, Novo said that its amycretin drug, a GLP-1 and amylin receptor agonist, was able to achieve an average body weight reduction of 9.7 percent with patients only suffering from mild to moderate gastrointestinal side effects.
Meanwhile, news reports last week said that Novo Nordisk’s diabetes drug Ozempic and weight loss treatment Wegovy are among the 15 drugs that are targeted for price negotiations by the US government.
Prior to former president Joe Biden’s final days in office, 15 drugs have been named for a potential negotiation process for becoming among the most expensive drugs.
6. Himax Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:HIMX)
Himax Technologies resumed its seven-day winning streak on Friday, adding 8.9 percent to its valuation to end at $12.85 apiece as it continues to take a boost from news that it would benefit from Taiwan Semiconductor’s AI and silicon photonics push.
According to reports, Taiwan Semiconductor named Himax as the exclusive micro-lens array supplier for both first- and second-generation COUPE, which is Taiwan Semiconductor’s silicon photonics initiative that is now in validation stages.
The first generation of COUPE was already fully developed and has so far been receiving the “highest priority” amongst Taiwan Semiconductor’s developing technologies. Mass production validation is already underway and second-gen mass production validation is expected to start in the first half of 2026.
Himax also earned a bullish outlook from an analyst, who projected strong revenue growth for the company at $1.16 billion for 2026, $1.42 billion in 2027, and $2.4 billion in 2028.
5. Sunrun Inc. (NASDAQ:RUN)
Bargain-hunting pushed Sunrun’s prices higher by 9.53 percent on Friday to close at $10.23 apiece amid a series of catalysts that buoyed market optimism.
After hitting a new 52-week low in the middle of the week, investors resorted to bargain-hunting to take advantage of its cheap valuations.
On Wednesday, Sunrun touched a new all-time low amid concerns about its earnings performance, as the company faces significant headwinds over the past year, coupled with fears that President Donald Trump’s shunning from the renewable energy sector could dampen its future growth.
On Tuesday, Trump ordered the US withdrawal from the Paris Agreement which aims to cut carbon emissions in a bid to limit global warming.
Lastly, investors may have repositioned their portfolios ahead of the company’s release of its fourth quarter and full-year earnings results next month.
4. iQIYI Inc. (NASDAQ:IQ)
Chinese video streaming services iQIYI jumped by 11.5 percent to finish at $2.23 apiece as investors took heart from its efforts to upgrade its services to lure more members.
According to the company, it upgraded its Diamond VIP membership enabling members to unlock Member Express Packages without needing additional membership points or purchases.
iQIYI officially launched Member Express Packages in 2023 in China, allowing VIP members to have exclusive access to unlock final episodes, behind-the-scenes extras, and more of an airing series through membership points or purchases.
The service, first available through the hit series “Mysterious Lotus Casebook,” received an enthusiastic response upon release, with over two million VIP members redeeming through membership points on the day of its launch.
Meanwhile, 2024 saw Member Express Packages increasingly become the standard for drama lovers, with more than 10 million VIP members using the service when viewing popular shows.
3. Dana Inc. (NYSE:DAN)
Dana Inc. grew its share prices on Friday by 14.89 percent to finish at $15.20 apiece after an optimistic 2025 guidance and preliminary earnings results for the full year 2024.
According to Dana Inc., preliminary adjusted EBITDA for the full year 2024 was at $885 million, higher by 5 percent than the $845 million in 2023.
Meanwhile, Dana Inc. said it expects sales to settle between $9.5 billion to $10.02 billion; adjusted EBITDA between $925 million to $1.02 billion; and a free cash flow between $175 million to $275 million.
“Improved working capital efficiency and reduced capital expenditures will increase free cash flow. Primarily due to the annualized benefit of our cost reduction actions, we expect a 2026 adjusted EBITDA margin of between 9.5 to 10.5 percent. Over the business cycle we expect free cash flow to be approximately four percent of sales and maintain one times net leverage,” said Dana Inc. Chief Finance Officer Timothy Kraus.
2. Twilio Inc. (NYSE:TWLO)
American communications cloud company Twilio Inc. grew its share prices by more than 22 percent on Friday to close at $136.23 apiece as investors snapped up shares following a projected improvement in its fourth-quarter earnings performance.
In a regulatory filing late Thursday, Twilio said it expects to report sales growth of 11% percent year-on-year when it publishes full results next month.
Meanwhile, analysts are expecting the company to post $1.16 billion in sales, or higher by 10 percent compared with last year.
The company also said it expects non-GAAP income from operations for the fourth quarter of 2024 and fiscal year 2024 to be above the top-end of the guidance ranges provided in late October.
1. Neuphoria Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:NEUP)
Neuphoria Therapeutics saw its share prices jump by 25.79 percent on Friday to end at $4.39 apiece as investors resorted to bargain-hunting to take advantage of the company’s cheap valuations, as it nears a 52-week low.
In the news, Neuphoria Therapeutics recently regained compliance with the Nasdaq’s minimum bid price requirement, having flagged for falling below the requirement.
In July 2024, the company received a deficiency letter from Nasdaq due to its American Depositary Shares not meeting the $1 minimum bid price over a 30-day period.
The issue is now resolved and the matter is considered closed—a development significant for Neuphoria Therapeutics as falling below the minimum requirement threatens itself from maintaining a position on the stock exchange.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
