10 Stocks Outrunning the Market; 3 on a High

Core Viewpoint - Strong gains were observed in ten stocks on Friday, driven by earnings reports and portfolio repositioning ahead of dividend payments, with major indices also closing in the green, particularly the Nasdaq which rose by 0.90 percent [1]. Group 1: Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) - Alphabet's share price increased by 4.01 percent to close at $314.98, as investors prepared for an upcoming dividend payment of $0.21 per share for Class A, B, and C shares, payable on March 16, 2026 [4][5]. - The company reported a 32 percent increase in net income to $132 billion in 2025, up from $100 billion in 2024, and a 15 percent rise in revenues to $402.8 billion from $350 billion year-on-year [5]. - In Q4, net income rose by 29.8 percent to $34.4 billion from $26.5 billion, while revenues jumped by 18 percent to $113.8 billion from $96.5 billion [5]. - CEO Sundar Pichai highlighted the launch of Gemini 3 as a significant milestone, contributing to strong growth across the business [6]. - YouTube's annual revenues exceeded $60 billion, with over 325 million paid subscriptions, and Google Cloud achieved an annual run rate of over $70 billion, driven by AI product demand [7]. - CFO Anat Ashkenazi is scheduled to participate in the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media and Telecom Conference on March 3, which may influence investor sentiment [8]. Group 2: B2Gold Corp. (NYSEAmerican:BTG) - B2Gold's stock rose by 5.27 percent to close at $5.39, reflecting a return to profitability due to production expansion and higher gold prices [9]. - The company reported a net income of $401.9 million, recovering from a net loss of $629.89 million in 2024, with gold revenues increasing by 61 percent to $3.06 billion from $1.9 billion year-on-year [10]. - In Q4, attributable net profit was $170.58 million, reversing an $11.88 million net loss from the same quarter a year earlier, with gold revenues more than doubling to $1.05 billion from $499.8 million [11]. - For 2026, B2Gold expects gold production between 820,000 and 970,000 ounces, a decrease from 2025 due to reduced output at the Otjikoto Mine and lower production at the Fekola Complex [11]. - The company announced a cash dividend of $0.02 per share for common shareholders, payable on March 19, 2026 [12].