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Last week the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was on form and recorded its second consecutive weekly gain. The benchmark index rose 2.8% to finish the period at 5391.1 points.
While a number of shares climbed higher, some climbed more than most. Here's why these shares were the best performers on the ASX 200 last week:
The Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) share price was the standout performer on the index last week with a massive 37% gain. Investors were buying the company's shares after it revealed that Chinese tech behemoth Tencent Holdings had become a substantial shareholder with a 5% stake. The market appears to believe that the WeChat owner could help Afterpay expand into the Asian market in the future.
The EML Payments Ltd (ASX: EML) share price wasn't far behind with a 28.7% gain. This was despite there being no news out of the payments company this week. But with lockdowns around the world easing, investors may be expecting the company to experience an uptick in demand in the near future. The EML Payments share price is still down 40% from its 52-week high.
The Polynovo Ltd (ASX: PNV) share price was a strong performer and jumped 28.1% higher. This follows the medical device company's appearance at the Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) Investor virtual conference. Investors appear to have been impressed with its NovoSorb BTM product and its sizeable market opportunity. NovoSorb BTM is a dermal scaffold for the regeneration of the dermis when lost through extensive surgery or burn.
The Appen Ltd (ASX: APX) share price was the next best performer with an 18.3% gain. Although there was no news out of the artificial intelligence company, its shares have been strong performers since the release of an update last month. That update revealed that Appen remains on course to achieve its FY 2020 profit guidance of $125 million to $130 million. One broker that was impressed was UBS. It recently retained its buy rating and $32.00 price target on the company's shares.
