The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was well and truly on form last week and charged materially higher. The benchmark index rose an impressive 4.4% higher to end the period at 6,190.2 points.
While the majority of shares on the index climbed with the market last week, some recorded stronger gains than others.
Here's why these were the best performing ASX 200 shares over the five days:
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Tabcorp Holdings Limited (ASX: TAH)
The Tabcorp share price was the best performer on the ASX 200 last week with a gain of 24.6%. The majority of this gain came on Friday when the gambling company was the subject of takeover speculation. That speculation suggested that a private equity firm is aiming to acquire the company and put former SportsBet CEO, Matthew Tripp, in charge. Tabcorp advised that it is not aware of any proposal.
Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT)
The Flight Centre share price wasn't far behind with an impressive 24.4% gain last week. Investors were buying the travel company's shares following the release of its annual general meeting update. That update revealed that bookings are improving and its corporate travel business is performing better than expected. This also helped give the Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB) share price a boost. It recorded a sizeable 20.3% gain over the week.
News Corporation (ASX: NWS)
The News Corp share price was a strong performer and shot 19.2% higher over the five days. A large portion of this came on Friday following the release of the media giant's first quarter update. New Corp revealed net income of $47 million, compared with a net loss of $211 million in the prior year. A key driver of this result was its Dow Jones business, which posted a record first quarter of profitability and higher revenues.
Eagers Automotive Ltd (ASX: APE)
The Eagers Automotive share price was on form and raced 16.5% higher last week. The catalyst for this was news that the auto retailer has acquired three new sites in Western Australia for a consideration of $30.3 million and a strategic site in New South Wales for $76.3 million. One broker that liked what it saw was UBS. It retained its buy rating and $13.00 price target on the company's shares. The Eagers Automotive share price ended the week at $12.65.
