The stock market overall had a strong month in May, building from April’s strength. Market volatility continued. COVID-19’s effect on the economy hasn’t gone away but it has slowed, and states are starting to reopen, albeit on different timelines. 

Twelve of the 18 Iowa-based companies on the Business Record’s Iowa Index posted stock price gains for the month. Five of those companies saw double-digit percentage gains. Six of the 18 posted losses in stock price; only one posted a double-digit loss.

Winnebago Industries Inc. had the largest gain of the month with a 28.19% increase. This was the second month in a row that Winnebago posted the largest gain in the Iowa Index. Lee Enterprises Inc. had the second-biggest gain with a 21.74% increase. Workiva Inc. was third with a 17.39% increase. 

The three companies that posted the biggest percentage losses were MidWest One Financial Group Inc. at 10.40%, Ames National Corp. at 8.73% and FBL Financial Group at 7.29%.

KemPharm, a specialty pharmaceutical company with operations in Coralville, has been delisted from trading on the Nasdaq market, as of the beginning of trading May 21. The company will trade under its same ticker symbol, “KMPH,” on the OTC Markets Venture Market (OTCQB). Kempharm will no longer be included in our Iowa Index.

Raytheon Technologies Corp. announced the completion of the all-stock merger of equals transaction between Raytheon Co. and United Technologies Corp. on April 3. Raytheon Co. shares ceased trading before the market’s open on April 3, and each share of Raytheon common stock has been converted in the merger into the right to receive 2.3348 shares of United Technologies common stock. Upon closing of the merger, United Technologies’ name has changed to “Raytheon Technologies Corp.,” and its shares of common stock will begin trading under the ticker symbol “RTX.” We will not list data for Raytheon Technologies Corp. for the month of May; we will begin tracking it in June.

The Iowa Index, an unweighted average price of 18 Iowa-based public companies, increased 10.82% in May — compared with a 7.45% increase in the Nasdaq stock index and an 4.64% increase in the Dow Jones industrial average. 

The Iowa-based companies that make up the Iowa Index are in bold in this list of companies with sizable operations in the state.

See the full Iowa Index