It was a year that will be remembered for a pandemic, an economic downturn and social justice protests, but for many publicly traded companies in Los Angeles, 2020 will also go down as a period of strong gains in the equities markets.

The Business Journal Stock Index, which tracks 117 companies based in Los Angeles County, recorded a 16% rise last year to outperform the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which rose 7.2%.

The LABJ Index finished close behind the Russell 3000 and the Standard and Poor’s 500, which were up 18.4% and 16.3%, respectively, in 2020. None of the market indexes, however, could keep pace with the Nasdaq last year, which jumped 43.6%.

“It’s not unique to Los Angeles,” said Sahak Manuelian, managing director of equity trading Wedbush Securities Inc. “As you look at all these companies that either outperform or conversely underperformed, it’s the same categorization of companies and same sectors’ outperformance or underperformance as we saw broadly within the S&P 500 index throughout the U.S.”

Sawtelle-based Marathon Patent Group Inc., a cryptocurrency mining company listed on the Nasdaq, set the pace for L.A. stocks in 2020 with an astronomical 1,084.5% gain, closing at $10.44 on Dec. 31.

Shares in Marathon Patent Group have continued their torrid pace in the new year, more than doubling since the start of 2021 to close at $23 on Jan. 13.

The surge in Marathon Patent Group’s stock price followed a sharp rise in the value of Bitcoin in December, when the currency topped $20,000.

CytRx Corp., a Brentwood-based biopharmaceutical research and development company, was the second highest gainer among L.A.-based companies in 2020, spiking 503.4% to close at $1.75 a share on Dec. 31. CytRx stock skyrocketed between Nov. 30 and Dec. 28, with the company’s share price jumping from $0.71 a share to $1.75 a share.

Manuelian said this growth may be related to the proposed merger between Culver City-based NantKwest Inc. and El Segundo-based ImmunityBio Inc., as CytRx has a royalty deal with ImmunityBio.

“(CytRx) have different royalty deals with some other biotech companies that came into play, so that was certainly another big mover,” Manuelian said.

Health care surges

“Biotech and health care were strong throughout the year … whether it was because of different M&A deals that they did with one another, or royalty deals like Cyt-Rx, or even, more specifically, Covid plays — the group was on fire,” Manuelian said.

CarParts.com Inc., an online automotive parts provider based in Torrance, posted the third-strongest showing by an L.A.-based company last year, with a 463.2% increase. The company’s stock closed at $12.39 on Dec. 31.

CarParts.com posted strong third-quarter earnings, including a 69% increase in net sales year over year, or $117.4 million in the quarter. In a statement to investors about the third-quarter earnings, CarParts.com Chief Executive Lev Peker attributed this growth to pandemic-related shifts in consumer behavior, with car owners opting for at-home repairs instead of buying new vehicles.

Genius Brands International Inc. registered a strong turnaround in 2020. After ranking as the No. 1 decliner on the LABJ Index in 2019, the Beverly-hills based entertainment company bounced back in 2020 to post the fourth highest gain among L.A. businesses with a rise of 406.1%.

The company’s stock price peaked at $5.94 a share on June 1 after it announced the launch of the “Kartoon Channel” across several platforms, including Amazon Prime and Apple TV.

L.A.-based health care, biomedical and pharmaceutical companies also saw major gains in 2020. Fulgent Genetics Inc., a Temple City-based genetic testing company that pivoted to testing for Covid-19, was No. 5 in the LABJ index with a 303.9% increase, closing at $52.10 on Dec. 31.

NantKwest and El Segundo-based NantHealth Inc., both part of billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong’s Nantworks family of businesses, finished No. 6 and No. 10 on the index of gainers, respectively.

NantKwest saw a 251.7% increase in 2020 and closed at $13.33 a share on Dec. 31, and NantHealth had a 213.6% rise and closed at $3.23 a share. 

Loss leader

Sylmar-based Second Sight Medical Products Inc., a prosthetic manufacturer, was the biggest decliner among L.A. County-based public companies last year, losing 68.5% of its value in 2020 and closing at $1.87 on Dec. 31.

Second Sight’s stock, which peaked for the year at $6.05 at the end of January, plummeted at the start of the pandemic. In March, the company laid off 84 employees as it started to “wind down” operations.

Multiple real estate companies in the LABJ Stock Index suffered in 2020. Santa Monica-based real estate investment trust Macerich Co. was the second biggest decliner, dropping 60.4% in stock value over the year with a closing price of $10.67 on Dec. 31.

Macerich, one of the largest shopping mall operators in the country, reported a net loss of $22.2 million in the third quarter, compared to net income of $46.4 million in the same period last year.

Culver City-based Reading International Inc., an entertainment and real estate company that operates multiplex cinemas, was the year’s third-biggest decliner as the company’s stock dropped 55.1% and closed out the year at $5.02 a share.

“In Los Angeles, in the bottom pile is anything that’s entertainment related,” Manuelian said.

Brentwood-based Hudson Pacific Properties Inc. and El Segundo-based Landmark Infrastructure Partners also saw losses in 2020. Hudson Pacific declined 36.2% and closed at $24.02 on Dec. 31, and Landmark declined 34.6% and finished 2020 at $10.72.

“The commercial real estate market was just crushed with the pandemic,” Manuelian said. “With everybody working from home, businesses shutting down, offices not being leased and so forth, this was definitely one that was affected.”