Aim’s big winners have been more than offset by companies that have lost 90% of their value, according to broker Peel Hunt.
It’s the junior market twentieth anniversary today, but more recently its performance had been disappointing said the broker.
Since the financial crisis in March 2009, Aim’s All Share Index had risen by a decent looking 105%, but that trails the 207% gains for mid-caps and 190% rise for small caps overall.
AIM's ten top 'ten baggers' since March 2009
Company/price now/gain
Amur Minerals · 37p · 5,400%
Staffline · 1,291p · 4,065%
Hutchison China Meditech · 1,808p · 3,623%
AFC Energy · 46p · 3,227%
Telit Communciations · 280p · 2,233%
Judges Scientific · 1.720p · 2,224%
Walker Greenbank · 200p · 2,186%
Amerisur Resources · 37p · 2,162%
Victoria · 975p · 2,086%
Impellam · 703p · 2,062%
Source: Datastream/Peel Hunt
Though 44 Aim members became ‘ten-baggers’ during that five year period (ie they rose by more than 900%) outweighing them, in numerical terms anyway, have been the number of shares that have fallen by 90%.
“68 stocks currently included in the AIM All-Share index are down by 90% or more from their March 2009 level, and that total does not include those companies that have disappeared from the index during the past five years,” said the broker.
While clearly these now account for a much smaller portion of the index than the winners, these ‘one-tenth baggers’ have acted as a brake nonetheless says Peel Hunt.
“The wide spread of performances underlines that AIM remains very much a stock-pickers’ market,” adds the broker and in that vein it has put together a portfolio of its best twenty stocks listed currently on London’s junior market selected by sector analysts.
Among the big AIM names, which includes a number of its clients, are antibody specialist Abcam (LON:ABC 600p), online fashion group boohoo (LON:BOO 40p), copper miner Central Asia Metals (LON:CAML 250p), emerald and ruby miner Gemfields (LON:GEM 77p) and coffee shop chain Patisserie Holdings (LON:CAKE 328p).
Others (in alphabetical order) included Breedon Agreegates (LON:BREE 53p), Cello (LON:CLL 120p), CentralNic (LON:CNIC 70p), Clinigen (LON:CLIN 1,000p), Epistem (LON:EHP 450p), Telford Homes (LON:TEF 550p) and and Toumaz (LON:TMZ 8p).