One of Tarrant County's newest corporate citizens leads this year's list of local stock performers, while one of the county's iconic names suffered the sharpest decline.
U.S. Concrete, which moved its corporate offices to Euless from Houston at mid-year, rode the rebounding construction market to turn in a 212 percent gain in 2012. North Texans might not be familiar with the corporate name, but they know one of its brands: Redi-Mix.Starting at $2.90 a year ago, U.S. Concrete's shares (ticker: USCR) headed higher in the new year and never looked back, as volumes and prices improved. The company's revenues were up 21 percent through the year's first nine months, and its shares closed the year at $9.05.On the opposite side of the ledger was RadioShack, whose shares (ticker: RSH) wore concrete shoes to slide 78 percent. The Fort Worth-based electronics retailer had a rough start with its first two earnings reports, and suspended its dividend in July. Then CEO James Gooch was suddenly bounced out in September, followed by its weakest earnings report yet. And as if nothing else could go wrong, Lance Armstrong and his RadioShack sponsorship came apart in October with revelations by U.S. anti-doping officials of Armstrong's long use of performance-enhancing drugs.Here are other top five gainers and losers among locally-based public companies.WinnersLast year was generally a tough one for energy companies as oil and gas prices hit lows at mid-year, but Grapevine-based GreenHunter Energy (ticker: GRH) managed an 86 percent gain. The company was formed in 2005 to pursue renewable energy sources, but in recent years moved into water services for the oil and gas industry.Shares of Fort Worth-based AZZ Inc. (ticker: AZZ), which makes industrial-strength electrical products and provides galvanizing services, rose 69 percent, while homebuilder D.R. Horton (ticker: DHI) was up 57 percent.AZZ said that as of Aug. 31, the end of its second fiscal quarter, its revenues were up 34 percent and net income was up 65 percent from a year earlier. The gains were led by galvanizing, which coats metal components with zinc to retard corrosion and whose fortunes track the health of the economy's industrial sector.New home construction and housing prices improved at their best rates in years, benefitting D.R. Horton, one of the biggest players. Horton's backlog of new home sales orders rose 61 percent by Sept. 30 compared to a year earlier, revenues were up and net income soared on a big income tax credit in fiscal 2012.Next up was Six Flags, the Grand Prairie-based amusement park operator, which continued to leave its 2010 bankruptcy in the rear-view mirror as its shares (ticker: SIX) gained 48 percent. For the third quarter, it reported net income up 31 percent on a 2 percent revenue gain.LosersEnergy and natural gas were the common themes for all four companies that followed RadioShack in the loser's bracket.Quicksilver Resources, like other natural gas producers, struggled with low commodity prices in much of 2012, including 10-year lows in the summer. But investors also worry the Fort Worth-based company's relatively high debt of more than $2 billion poses a challenge, and its shares (ticker: KWK) finished the year down 57 percent.Another recent Tarrant transplant, Basic Energy Services (ticker: BAS), lost 42 percent for the year. In the third quarter, the company, which moved its headquarters to Fort Worth from Midland, said drilling had slowed, paring revenues by 2 percent and slashing earnings 76 percent from a year earlier.Royalty trusts are designed to give their investors an ownership stake in oil and gas -- fine when prices are up, not so great when prices are down. San Juan Basin Royalty Trust and Permian Basin Royalty Trust round out the bottom five.Reserves at San Juan Basin (ticker: SJT) are mostly natural gas, which despite a late-year rally remain at depressed levels in the face of a persistent glut. The trust's units took a header at mid-year, when gas hit a 10-year low, and finished the year down 41 percent.Permian Basin hasn't fared much better, closing the year down 40 percent. Its monthly dividend eroded during the year to finish at just 5 1/2 cents, whereas the units cost more than $12.Jim Fuquay, (817) 390-7552Twitter: @jimfuquayHave more to add? News tip? Tell us
