All major North American indexes ended the year with double digit gains, so it’s not surprising that most of the securities on my Internet Wealth Builder recommended list gained ground. But some produced extraordinary gains that considerably enhanced the net worth of anyone who owned them. Here’s a look at five of our big winners in 2025.
Celestica Inc.
One of the beneficiaries of the AI boom has been Toronto-based Celestica Inc. CLS-T, which has become a key supplier of AI infrastructure components. Celestica designs and builds high-speed networking, storage, and platforms used in data centres powering AI workloads. The result has been revenue and earnings growth that continue to beat expectations. That has encouraged investors to pile into the stock. The share price was up 154 per cent in 2023, 242 per cent in 2024, and 206 per cent in 2025. Since our original recommendation in November, 2023, the stock has gained 368 per cent. This year is likely to see more of the same unless the AI demand fizzles.
Groupe Dynamite Inc.
With consumers complaining about affordability, you’d think a relatively new fashion retailer would face some tough barriers. But Groupe Dynamite GRGD-T has proven it can succeed, whatever the circumstances. The company has two main brands, Dynamite and Garage. It sells through stores and e-commerce sites across North America, focusing on fashion for Gen Z and millennials. The company provides trendy clothing, including tops, dresses, denim, outerwear, activewear, and accessories. We recommended the stock in March at $14.76. It ended 2025 at $82.67, for a gain of 460 per cent. The stock finished the year strong, so we could see more gains in 2026.
Aritzia Inc.
Groupe Dynamite wasn’t the only fashion retailer to put up big numbers in 2025. Vancouver-based Aritzia ATZ-T was another great success story, with the share price rising 120 per cent. Part of the reason is strong financial reports, showing robust sales growth and improved profitability. Investors are also intrigued by the company’s rapid growth in the U.S. The company’s positioning as an “Everyday Luxury” brand has caught on with younger buyers, prompting strong repeat sales. We expect growth to continue in 2026.
iShares S&P/TSX Global Gold Index ETF
You couldn’t go wrong investing in gold in 2025. The price of the precious metal rose about 65 per cent during the year, and many mining companies were ahead over 100 per cent, including several of our recommendations. An easy way to add to your wealth was to buy units of XGD XGD-T, an ETF that invests in a portfolio of international mining stocks. It gained almost 143 per cent for the year. We should continue to see growth in the year ahead, but probably not at the same pace.
Toronto-Dominion Bank
It’s rare to see the share price of a Big Six bank rise by almost 70 per cent in a single year. But TD TD-T was in a deep hole after its shares were battered when U.S. securities regulators found the company’s American operations were up to their neck in massive money laundering schemes involving billions of dollars that had been going on for years. The bank ended up being fined more than US$3-billion. Worse, regulators imposed an asset cap on future U.S. growth, a measure used only in the most severe cases. Investors bailed out and the stock finished 2024 down 10.6 per cent while the financial sector as a whole was up 25 per cent. But people have short memories, it seems. TD was the top performer among the banks in 2025, up 69 per cent. Don’t expect a repeat this year.
Gordon Pape is editor and publisher of the Internet Wealth Builder and Income Investor newsletters.