It’s no secret that the S&P 500 is off to a rough start in 2016, but the index traded mostly flat in February after a big January selloff. Here’s a look at the five best performers in the index last month.

1. Newmont Mining Corp NEM 2.21%

The SPDR Gold Trust (ETF) GLD 1.73% has surged 16.2 percent so far in 2016, and Newmont rode the wave of rising gold prices to a 32.2 percent gain over the past month. Newmont investors are hoping that global economic uncertainty continues to worry investors because gold is one of the most popular safe-haven trades.

2. ADT Corp ADT 0.3%

Of course, one recipe for a share price spike is a buyout, which is exactly why ADT lands on this month’s list. On February 16, Apollo Global Management LLC APO 4.28% acquired ADT for $42 per share in cash, sending ADT’s stock higher by 41.2 percent in February.

3. Michael Kors Holdings Ltd KORS 1.12%

On February 2, Michael Kors reported…

Click here to continue reading

Want to learn more about how to profit off the stock market? Or maybe you just want to be able to look sophisticated in front of your coworkers when they ask you what you are reading on your Kindle, and you’d prefer to tell them “Oh, I’m just reading a book about stock market analysis,” rather than the usual “Oh, I’m just looking at pics of my ex-girlfriend on Facebook.” For these reasons and more, check out my book, Beating Wall Street with Common Sense. I don’t have a degree in finance; I have a degree in neuroscience. You don’t have to predict what stocks will do if you can predict what traders will do and be one step ahead of them. I made a 400% return in the stock market over five years using only basic principles of psychology and common sense. Beating Wall Street with Common Sense is now available on Amazon, and tradingcommonsense.com is always available on your local internet!