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Shopping for particular person UK shares relatively than a tracker can actually repay if traders get it proper. 5 shares on the FTSE 100 doubled traders’ cash over the past yr, in a single case rocketing greater than 400%. Can they do it once more?
And the winner is… Fresnillo shares
The largest winner of the lot was gold and silver miner Fresnillo (LSE: FRES). Its 410% acquire would have turned £10,000 into £51,000.
It’s an apparent beneficiary of the hovering gold value, which climbed 65% this yr to punch via one more all-time excessive, buying and selling above $4,400 an oz., as I write.
Gold’s been pushed by geopolitical uncertainty, financial volatility, commerce wars and heavy central financial institution shopping for. It’s additionally been boosted by a weaker US greenback, which makes gold cheaper for abroad patrons, and falling rates of interest, which scale back the attraction of rival secure havens similar to money and bonds. Shopping for particular person gold shares relatively than the valuable steel itself provides one other layer of danger, resulting from potential operational difficulties, but in addition ramps up the potential rewards, as Fresnillo exhibits.
Can this proceed in 2026? Most analysts stay optimistic in regards to the gold value, however I believe traders must be cautious. I’m all the time cautious about chasing final yr’s winners, and it now appears staggeringly costly, with a price-to-earnings ratio of 117. By comparability, the FTSE 100 trades on a P/E of round 17.
Sensible development returns
I take an analogous view of the second-best FTSE 100 performer, Africa-focused telecoms star Airtel Africa. Its shares surged 216% in 2025 and are up round 360% over 5 years. For context, that’s roughly seven instances sooner than chip large Nvidia.
Airtel Africa has an enormous development opportuity however appears too expensive for my tastes, with a P/E nudging 75. I are likely to favour worth shares over momentum-fuelled development, though after I take a look at Fresnillo and Airtel Africa, I ponder why.
So what about third-placed Endeavour Mining? Like Fresnillo, it’s a gold miner and jumped 157% within the final yr. Endeavour operates in some powerful components of the world, so valuable steel costs aren’t the one danger. Issues of safety, environmental issues and native political instability can all have an effect on returns.
The attraction right here is valuation. With a P/E of round 25, it’s far cheaper than Fresnillo and may very well be a extra measured strategy to play the gold value. Nonetheless, traders tempted should perceive the dangers. And there are lots.
Defence firms fly
The subsequent fabulous winner is fast-growing defence group Babcock Worldwide Group, up greater than 150%. Rising world tensions and elevated Western defence spending have pushed its orders, revenues and prospects.
With a P/E of round 25, there could also be scope for additional features. A lot will depend upon geopolitics, notably developments in Ukraine.
Lastly, inevitably, there’s Rolls-Royce Holdings. It doubled in 2025, which is spectacular given its already stellar run. The shares are up a rare 1,168% over three years. Fortunately, that is the one I maintain.
With a P/E of 55, Rolls-Royce appears weak to even a sniff of dangerous information, and I’m questioning whether or not to take some income forward of its full-year outcomes on 26 February. That’s the issue with huge winners. Subsequent yr’s double-your-money shares in all probability received’t come from this record, so I’ll be trying elsewhere for 2026.
