Ten firms led a market rally with whopping gains on Thursday, outperforming the lackluster performance of the major indices amid a series of positive developments and corporate earnings that sparked buying appetite.
The Dow Jones was up by 0.28 percent, the S&P 500 grew 0.40 percent, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq rallied 0.39 percent.
In this article, we name the 10 top performers and detail the reasons behind their strong performance. To come up with the list, we considered only the stocks with a $2 billion market capitalization and $5 million in trading volume.
10. Celsius Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:CELH)
Celsius Holdings grew its share prices by 4.04 percent on Thursday to close at $36.34 apiece as investors loaded positions following “buy” recommendations from two investment firms.
On the same day, Jefferies raised its price target for the firm to $45 from $44 previously while maintaining a “buy” recommendation on the shares.
According to Jefferies, the adjustment reflected Celsius Holdings Inc.’s (NASDAQ:CELH) acquisition of Alani Nu, as well as its outlook guidance, which aligns with the market consensus.
Celsius Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:CELH) expects to post adjusted EBITDA growth of 17 to 20 percent for the year, aligned with the 19 percent as targeted by analysts.
Needham & Company, for its part, also maintained its “buy” recommendation and price target of $47 on Celsius Holdings Inc.’s (NASDAQ:CELH) stock.
Meanwhile, TD Cowen reiterated a more conservative rating for the company—a “hold” recommendation with a price target of $37, just a few cents shy of the company’s last closing price.
9. Organon & Co. (NYSE:OGN)
Organon rallied for a third consecutive day on Thursday, jumping 4.26 percent to finish at $9.54 apiece following the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) interchangeability approval of its Hadlima medicine into Humira, paving the way for further accessibility to the said treatment.
In a joint statement, Organon & Co. (NYSE:OGN) and Samsung Bioepis Co., Ltd. said that the Hadlima high- and low-concentration autoinjectors can now be interchanged with Humira, allowing pharmacists to substitute the reference product with a biosimilar without the need to consult the prescriber, depending on state pharmacy laws.
“An increased uptake of biosimilars may lead to improved patient access to biologic therapies and potential savings for the US health care system. As a company dedicated to making medicines more accessible, Hadlima, now designated as fully interchangeable with the reference product, has a greater potential to bring savings for patients,” Organon & Co. (NYSE:OGN) said.
Hadlima is a tumor necrosis factor (TNF) blocker indicated for appropriate patients with rheumatoid arthritis, juvenile idiopathic arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, plaque psoriasis, hidradenitis suppurativa, and uveitis.
8. James Hardie Industries PLC (NYSE:JHX)
James Hardie snapped a six-day losing streak on Thursday, adding 4.26 percent to close at $23.01 apiece as investors resorted to bargain-hunting to take advantage of the previous dips.
In recent news, James Hardie Industries PLC (NYSE:JHX) announced a 22 percent lower net income in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2025, at $43.6 million from the $55.6 million registered in the same period last year.
Net sales dipped by 3 percent to $971.5 million from $1.005 billion year-on-year.
For the full year period, net income dropped by 17 percent to $424 million from $510.2 million, while net sales dipped by 1 percent to $3.877 billion from $3.936 billion.
James Hardie Industries PLC (NYSE:JHX) also posted a cautious outlook for fiscal year 2026 amid the potential impact of the trade tariffs on the cost of home construction.
“As a result, in North America, which represents approximately three-quarters of our total net sales, we are prudently planning for market volumes to contract in FY26, including a fourth consecutive year of declines in large-ticket repair & remodel activity,” said James Hardie Industries PLC (NYSE:JHX) CEO Aaron Erter.
7. JD.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:JD)
JD rallied by 4.31 percent on Thursday to close at $32.94 apiece, following three straight sessions of decline, as investors repositioned portfolios ahead of the company’s annual stockholders’ meeting on June 20.
Despite JD.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:JD) pointing out that no proposals were due for shareholder approval, it said that the event will accommodate questions and concerns from shareholders on the company’s affairs with the management.
JD.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:JD), an e-commerce and logistics holding company based in China, registered a 53-percent increase in net income attributable to shareholders in the first quarter of the year, at 10.9 billion yuan versus the 7.1 billion yuan registered in the same period last year.
Net revenues increased by 15.8 percent to 301.1 billion yuan from 260 billion yuan in the same comparable period.
“Our performance was supported by improving consumer sentiment and continued enhancements to JD’s supply chain capabilities and user experience. User growth was particularly strong during the quarter, reflecting the increasing trust and mindshare JD has earned from consumers and further strengthening our ecosystem,” said CEO Sandy Xu.
“We are also seeing encouraging signs from new initiatives, and we believe these emerging opportunities will further position us for long-term, high-quality growth,” she added.
6. Coty Inc. (NYSE:COTY)
Coty Inc. grew its share prices by 4.61 percent on Thursday to end at $4.99 apiece as investors turned optimistic towards its business amid the ongoing trade negotiations between the US and the European Union.
A significant chunk of Coty Inc.’s (NYSE:COTY) products are produced in Europe, and any positive impact from the ongoing trade talks could, in turn, dribble into the company’s profit margins and impact strategic direction.
Earlier this month, Coty Inc. (NYSE:COTY) announced that it was already poised to transfer manufacturing to the US from Europe and source supplies from other countries instead of China, if the global trade war continues to worsen.
In the third quarter of fiscal year 2025, Coty Inc. (NYSE:COTY) said it swung to a net loss attributable to shareholders of $409 million from a $500,000 net income in the same period a year earlier.
Net revenues also declined by 6.2 percent to $1.299 billion from $1.385 billion year-on-year.
5. ImmunityBio, Inc. (NASDAQ:IBRX)
ImmunityBio grew its share price by 5.69 percent on Thursday to end at $2.6 apiece as investors continued to snap up shares following its expansion of the Cancer Bioshield Platform in the Middle East.
In a statement, ImmunityBio, Inc. (NASDAQ:IBRX) said it inked a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Investment of Saudi Arabia (MISA), King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Centre (KFSHRC), and King Abdullah International Medical Research Center (KAIMRC) for the adoption and introduction of the Cancer BioShield platform to Saudi Arabia and the broader Middle East.
The partnership will pave the way for a new era of immune-restorative therapies for cancer patients.
The BioShield platform, powered by its largest-revenue treatment, Anktiva, is expected to represent a paradigm shift in cancer care.
“We are honored to work with KAIMRC, KFSHRC, and MISA to bring this transformative technology to the region. The BioShield platform changes the way we think about treating cancer—not by destroying the immune system but by restoring and activating it,” said ImmunityBio, Inc. (NASDAQ:IBRX) Executive Chairman Patrick Soon-Shiong.
4. Roivant Sciences Ltd. (NASDAQ:ROIV)
Roivant Sciences ended a three-day losing streak on Thursday, jumping 6.4 percent to finish at $11.30 each, as investors resorted to bargain-hunting, shunning its dismal earnings performance in the past quarter of the year.
On the same day, Roivant Sciences Ltd. (NASDAQ:ROIV) widened its attributable net loss by 36 percent to $206 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2025, from $151 million in the same period last year. Revenues dropped by 16 percent to $7.57 billion from $9.02 billion year-on-year.
For the full fiscal year period, Roivant Sciences Ltd. (NASDAQ:ROIV) swung to an attributable net loss of $171.98 million from a $ 4.35 billion attributable net income a year earlier.
Revenues, on the other hand, dropped by 11 percent to $29 billion from $32.7 billion year-on-year.
3. Veeva Systems Inc. (NYSE:VEEV)
Veeva Systems soared by 19 percent on Thursday to end at $279.04 apiece following an impressive earnings performance in the first quarter of fiscal year 2026.
In a statement, Veeva Systems Inc. (NYSE:VEEV) said net income rose by 41 percent to $228.2 million from $161.7 million in the same period last year, while revenues increased by 17 percent to $759 million from $650.3 million year-on-year.
“I consider this our best first quarter ever. We executed with speed, quality, and innovation across all areas on short-term objectives and long-term initiatives aligned to our values and 2030 goals,” said CEO Peter Gassner.
For the second quarter ending July 31, Veeva Systems Inc. (NYSE:VEEV) said it is targeting to book revenues between $766 million and $769 million, with revenues for the full fiscal year of 2026 at a range of $3.09 billion to $3.1 billion.
For his part, CFO Brian Van Wagener said that the company is targeting to double its 2025 revenue run rate goal by 2030.
2. C3.ai, Inc. (NYSE:AI)
C3.ai rebounded by 20.76 percent on Thursday to end at $27.80 apiece as investors cheered its $450 contract renewal with the US Air Force to support its Predictive Analytics and Decision Assistant (PANDA) operations, shunning its dismal earnings performance in the past quarter.
In its financial statement, C3.ai, Inc. (NYSE:AI) said the renewed contract was higher by $350 million than the previous award, and would support the expanded deployment of PANDA, powered by the C3 Agentic AI Platform, as the Air Force’s designated system of record for predictive maintenance.
The company said that its partnership with the US Air Force will run through 2029.
In the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2025, C3.ai, Inc. (NYSE:AI) widened its net loss by 9.3 percent to $79.7 million from $72.9 million in the same period last year. This pushed its full-year net loss higher by 3 percent to $288.7 million from $279.7 million year-on-year.
Meanwhile, revenues for the fourth quarter increased by 26 percent to $108.7 million from $86.6 million year-on-year, while revenues for the full-year period grew 25 percent to $389.1 million from $310.6 million in the same comparable period.
1. e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. (NYSE:ELF)
e.l.f. Beauty surged by 23.58 percent on Thursday to end at $111.84 apiece following news that it was acquiring makeup line Rhode, a company owned by Justin Bieber’s model wife, Hailey, for $1 billion.
In a statement, e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. (NYSE:ELF) said it officially inked a definitive agreement with Rhode for the said amount. The transaction includes an $800-million combination of cash and stock, and an additional $200 million based on the future growth of the brand over a three-year timeframe.
“[Rhode] further diversifies our portfolio with a fast-growing brand that makes the best of prestige accessible. We are excited by Rhode’s ability to break beauty barriers, fully aligning with e.l.f. Beauty’s vision to create a different kind of company,” said e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. (NYSE:ELF) Chairman and CEO Tarang Amin.
The brand has seen incredible growth, more than doubling its consumer base over the past year and driving a total of $212 million in net sales in the past 12 months ending March 31, 2025.
While we acknowledge the potential of ELF, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than ELF and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires.
Disclosure: None. Insider Monkey focuses on uncovering the best investment ideas of hedge funds and insiders. Please subscribe to our free daily e-newsletter to get the latest investment ideas from hedge funds’ investor letters by entering your email address below.
