20 Companies That Turned Their Fortunes Around in 2017

Source: Wikimedia Commons / Lions Gate Entertainment

6. Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.
> Current stock price: $33.81
> Latest annual revenue: $3.2 billion
> Industry: Motion pictures

Instead of fading to black, the movie company’s fortunes are having a happy ending in 2017. Santa Monica, California-based Lionsgate rolled up 26 Academy Award nominations in 2017, the most of any studio, boosted by Oscar winners “La La Land” and “Hacksaw Ridge” as well as the critically acclaimed “Hell or High Water.” Those films have raised Lionsgate’s profile from a scrappy, independent movie company — think “Manchester By The Sea” and “Moonlight” — to a major motion picture player. Shares of the publicly traded studio, which also counts “The Hunger Games” in its lineup of films, slipped to $18.53 on Feb. 1, 2016 but have soared 82% to $33.81 on strong earnings.

Source: Jeramey Lende / Shutterstock.com

7. Southwest Airlines
> Current stock price: $65.67
> Latest annual revenue: $20.4 billion
> Industry: Airlines

Southwest Airlines is trying to deliver better customer service as the airline business becomes more bottom-line driven. Dallas, Texas-based Southwest, known for its no-frills, low-cost service, is spending as much as $300 million to bring new technology to the airport ramp and other operations. This is in addition to the $500 million the company is pouring into a new reservation system. Apparently, investors believe in the moves the airline is taking. Shares of the carrier have soared more than 84% to $65.67, after bottoming at at $35.69 on Feb, 1, 2016. Southwest has topped analyst estimates in three of the last four quarters. The airline posted earnings per share of $3.75 in 2016. Analysts expect EPS to slip to $3.57 in 2017 before climbing to $4.54 next year. Revenue in 2016 was $20.4 billion and is predicted by analysts to rise to $21.1 billion next year.

Source: Yelp, Inc. / Wikimedia Commons

8. Yelp Inc.
> Current stock price: $42.03
> Latest annual revenue: $713.1 million
> Industry: Media

It seems investors have left a good review on Yelp, turbocharging the San Francisco, California-based company’s shares. Yelp stock price more than doubled from its nadir of $15.56 on Feb. 8, 2016 to $47.58 on Nov. 20. Yelp revenue growth is driven by the increase in mobile device use and paying advertising accounts. Revenue in the third quarter climbed 19% to $222.4 million. Adjusted net income increased 38% to $25.4 million from $18.4 million a year earlier. Revenue climbed from $137.6 million in 2012 to $713.1 million in 2016. Yelp lost 6 cents a share in 2016 but is forecast to earn 17 cents per share in 2017 and 38 cents the following year.

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9. PayPal Holdings Inc.
> Current stock price: $73.62
> Latest annual revenue: $10.8 billion
> Industry: Financial

San Jose, California-based PayPal is riding the e-commerce wave. The online payments system now has 218 million customers. PayPal shares leaped to a 2017 high of $78.58 on Nov. 20, rising from a nearly two-year low of $31.69 on Jan. 18, 2016. Investors also believe in CEO Dan Schulman. He’s taken three companies public and has overseen PayPal’s spinoff from eBay as well as major acquisitions and partnerships PayPal has undertaken during his tenure. PayPal posted revenue of $10.8 billion in 2016, and analysts believe revenue will rise to $12.98 billion in 2017. Analysts expects earnings per share to climb from $1.50 in 2016 to $1.87 in 2017.

Source: Thinkstock

10. The Boeing Co.
> Current stock price: $295.63
> Latest annual revenue: $94.6 billion
> Industry: Aerospace

Boeing, the aerospace colossus, is riding a wave of orders for its commercial jets. The latest comes from Royal Air Maroc, which agreed this week to buy four 787 Dreamliners in a deal valued at over $1 billion. That announcement followed Boeing’s $15.1 billion order for 40 787-10 Dreamliners with the Emirates in November at the Dubai Air Show. Shares of Boeing have nearly tripled to $295.63 at the end of December after tumbling to a two-year low of $108.63 on Feb. 8, 2016. Analysts expect earnings per share to rise from $7.24 in 2016 to $10.21 in 2017, and revenue to decline to $92.2 billion this year from $94.6 billion last year.