The Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI) has done surprisingly well this year after a lacklustre performance in 2023.
The bellwether index has gained 8.4% year-to-date and surpassed the 3,500 mark, and hit a six-year high back on 10 July.
Although the index has done well so far, several stocks have notched up an even better performance.
Here are four of them that you may consider adding to your buy watchlist.
Valuemax Group (SGX: T6I)
Valuemax provides pawnbroking and secured moneylending services and also retails and trades pre-owned jewellery and gold.
The group has 47 outlets in Singapore and two pawnshops operated by associates in Malaysia, along with 21 outlets in Malaysia through other associate companies.
Valuemax’s share price has climbed 24.2% year-to-date and is close to its 52-week high of S$0.42.
The pawnbroker released an encouraging set of earnings for 2023.
Revenue rose 15.3% year on year to S$331 million while gross profit jumped 22% year on year to S$100.2 million.
Net profit increased by 19% year on year to S$52.9 million.
In tandem with the good performance, Valuemax paid out a final dividend of S$0.022, 10% higher than the S$0.02 it paid out in 2022.
Back in November last year, Valuemax undertook a restructuring to prepare its associate, Well Chip Group Sdn Bhd, for a potential Malaysian listing.
Well Chip Group carries out pawnbroking and the retailing and trading of jewellery and gold in Malaysia.
Last week, the group announced that Well Chip’s IPO was oversubscribed by 12.87 times, demonstrating the strong demand for shares of its associate.
Yoma Strategic Holdings (SGX: Z59)
Yoma Strategic owns a diversified portfolio of businesses in real estate, mobile financial services, leasing, food and beverage, and investments in Myanmar.
Yoma’s share price has soared 80% year-to-date but is somewhat off its 52-week high of S$0.17.
The group reported a sparkling set of earnings for fiscal 2024 (FY2024) ending 31 March 2024 with revenue surging by 78.6% year on year to US$220.8 million.
Net profit came in at US$21.2 million for the year, boosted by net fair value gains of US$41.9 million.
The business also generated a positive free cash flow of US$78.2 million, a sharp increase from just US$409,000 in the previous year.
For its land development division Yoma Land, the increase in revenue was driven by sales and construction progress of various projects within the country.
Unrecognised revenue of US$147.1 million is expected to be realised over the next 18 to 24 months.
Its Mobile Financial Services arm also did well, with revenue rising by 18.3% year on year for the second half of FY2024 (2H FY2024).
Leasing revenue increased by 64% year on year as Yoma expanded its operating lease and daily rental fleets.
As of 31 March, the group had a fleet size of 1,129 vehicles.
Frencken Group (SGX: E28)
Frencken is a technology solutions company serving customers in the analytical life sciences, automotive, healthcare, industrial, and semiconductor sectors.
The group has 19 operating sites and employs more than 3,600 staff across Asia, Europe, and the US.
Frencken’s share price has done well this year and increased by 20% year-to-date to S$1.66, coming close to its 52-week high of S$1.74.
The group released an encouraging set of numbers for its first quarter 2024 (1Q 2024) business update.
Revenue grew 12.2% year on year to S$193.6 million with higher contributions from the Mechatronics division.
With better operating leverage, Frencken’s gross margin improved by 1.4 percentage points to 13.7%.
Net profit soared 73% year on year to S$9 million.
For the first half of 2024, management expects revenue from the semiconductor, medical, and analytical life sciences divisions to increase year-on-year.
However, the industrial automation and automotive segments will see lower year-on-year revenue.
Tianjin Pharmaceutical Da Ren Tang Group (SGX: T14)
Tianjin Pharmaceutical is a pharmaceutical company that manufactures and distributions medicines throughout China.
It deals with more than 1,300 product categories and has 122 exclusive products.
The group’s share price has risen by more than 18% year-to-date and is inching closer towards its 52-week high of US$2.66.
Tianjin Pharmaceutical released a mixed set of earnings for 1Q 2024.
Revenue dipped by 3% year on year to RMB 2.1 billion but gross profit inched up 2% year on year to RMB 1.05 billion.
The sharp fall in finance costs was balanced out by a lower share of results from associate companies, resulting in net profit dipping by 3% year on year to RMB 387.3 million.
The group is implementing its corporate strategy of “making green TCM* bigger and stronger” and will leverage its brand power and product strength to grow the business further.
*Note: TCM stands for traditional Chinese medicine
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Disclosure: Royston Yang does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned.
