2018 has been super-kind to some companies and viciously cruel to others. From booming firms like Boeing and Amazon, to businesses that have struggled big-time over the past 11 months, we reveal this year's key winners and losers based on the change in their share price from the beginning of January to mid-November.

Kicking off with the winners, Sony hiked its annual profit forecast last month by 30% off the back of surging PlayStation sales. The Japanese conglomerate's music and movie divisions have been performing solidly too, and this is reflected in the company share price, which has risen from ¥5,279 ($46.35, £35.73) at the beginning of January to ¥6,056 ($53.18, £41).

Nike is also having a stellar 2018 with its share price up from $63.49 (£48.96) on 2 January to $76.36 (£58.88), an increase of 20%. Sales have been booming in China especially, and the Colin Kaepernick campaign the company ran in May has helped boost revenues in North America, despite the controversy surrounding it.

Traditional bricks and mortar retailers have, in the most part, endured a miserable 2018, but there have been some exceptions, including budget chains like Dollar General. The Tennessee-based firm has opened hundreds of stores this year, and sales rose by 10.6% in Q2. No wonder the company share price has been so buoyant, up from $94.06 (£72.57) on 2 January to $116.10 (£89.58) at the time of writing.

Boeing is cashing in on the global boom in air travel, which is driving record sales. On top of this, the firm's defence business is flourishing, and a favourable US tax settlement has helped send profits through the roof. As you might expect, the aerospace titan's share price is on fire as well, currently trading at $369.34 (£284.98), up from $296.84 (£229.04) at the start of the year.

The Microsoft share price has increased from $85.95 (£66.31) at the beginning of 2018 to an impressive $109.57 (£84.54) currently. Last month, the tech company smashed analysts' expectations to report bumper revenue and profit figures for Q1 – Microsoft's Azure cloud computing service is thriving, along with its software, Surface and gaming divisions.

Canada's big e-commerce success story, Shopify exceeded expert predictions for the 13th consecutive quarter last month to post sales of $270.1 million (£208.5m), an increase of 58% from the same period in 2017. As a result, the firm's share price has risen considerably, up from $105.49 (£81.56) at the start of the year to $140.90 (£108.94).

Unlike many department store chains in the US, Macy's has had a very promising year so far. Making something of a comeback in 2018 after shuttering 100 underperforming stores, the recovering retailer posted better-than-expected Q2 results, and is in the process of opening 120 discount Backstage locations. The Macy's share price is doing very well too, up from $26.31 (£20.35) at the beginning of January to $37.78 (£29.22).

Amazon's quest for global domination has shown no signs of slowing in 2018. The e-commerce and cloud leviathan reached the trillion-dollar market value milestone in September, becoming the second company in the world to do so, and its Q3 earnings have beaten analysts' expectations. Needless to say, the Amazon share price has soared this year, up from $1,189.01 (£919.48) on 2 January to $1,712.43 (£1,324.25).

Discover what Amazon plans to do next

Going from strength to strength, Netflix overtook Disney in May to become America's most valuable media company, and the streaming service exceeded Wall Street predictions for Q3, adding a further 6.96 million subscribers. The company share price has risen impressively too this year, up from $201.07 (£155.55) at the beginning of 2018 to $294.07 (£227.67) at the time of writing.

Read about how Netflix conquered the world and its future plans

Under Armour execs have a lot to celebrate this year. The US sportswear firm's overseas investments have paid off and then some, with international revenues up 28% in the second quarter, and the firm's Q3 earnings have surpassed analyst expectations. The Under Armour share price reflects this, up from $15.03 (£11.63) at the start of 2018 to $22.75 (£17.61).

Fast casual dining chain Chipotle has boosted sales this year despite bumping up prices on a number of menu items, and the Mexican-inspired eatery will have 130 additional locations in the US by the end of 2018. This steady, solid growth has had a positive effect on the company share price, which has risen from $292.95 (£226.62) at the start of the year to a very respectable $490.76 (£379.83).

A fierce bidding war between Comcast and Rupert Murdoch's 21st Century Fox that culminated in a blind auction in September has sent Sky shares skyrocketing this year, up from $1,310.84 (£1,016) at the start of January to $2,228.82 (£1,727.50). Comcast ended up winning the battle for the British media and telecoms company, outpacing Fox with a lavish offer of $39 billion (£30.2bn). 

Read about the incredible rise of the media family who conquered the world

The best performer this year in the UK's FTSE350, Ocado has had a fantastic 2018 so far. In May, the British online supermarket signed a lucrative contract with Kroger to provide the US retailer with its delivery technology. This plum deal has worked wonders on the company share price, which has shot up from $506.60 (£392.50) at the start of the year to $1,036.78 (£803.20).

Even after posting slightly disappointing Q3 results last month, WWE has had a stonking year so far. The pro wrestling media and entertainment firm has secured big-money deals with the likes of NBCUniversal and Fox, and the WWE Network hit a record 2.1 million subscribers in April. Consequently, the company share price has leaped from $31.41 (£24.34) at the beginning of January to $69.57 (£53.91).

Earlier this month, Fossil Group reported better than expected Q3 results, wowing analysts and hiking up the company share price, which has risen from $8.65 (£6.71) at the beginning of January to $19.17 (£14.86). Wearable technology products, particularly hybrid smartwatches, are proving to be a major moneyspinner for the US watchmaker.

Now for this year's losers. First up is Facebook. The social media behemoth faced a storm of criticism in March when it was revealed British political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica had harvested personal data from millions of profiles. Since then, the platform has been losing users in their droves, and the company share price has dropped from $181.42 (£140.57) at the start of January to $144.96 (£112.32) in mid-November.

Harley-Davidson is having a horrific 2018 too, with its share price trading near a seven-year low, down from $52.06 (£40.30) at the beginning of January to $40.73 (£31.53). Trump administration tariffs have pushed up costs and sales have slipped as the iconic motorcycle manufacturer struggles to attract younger customers. 

As well as Harley-Davidson, read about other iconic companies that are struggling under the Trump administration

Ford is having an equally trying year. Slowing sales in China and Europe to a lesser extent have eaten into the US automaker's profits in 2018, bashing the company share price, which fell to its lowest level in nine years on 24 October, and has only marginally recovered to hit $9.54 (£7.38), down from $12.66 (£9.80) at the start of 2018.

Down from $79.61 (€70.62, £61.56) at the beginning of the year to $58.49 (€51.89, £45.21), Daimler stock has been falling throughout 2018 and nosedived this month after the German carmaker issued a profit warning, spooking investors. The unexpected drop in profits has been put down to the cost of recalling vehicles with diesel defeat devices and banned air con fluid, as well as slowing Mercedes sales in Germany.

Hit by slowing sales of its vehicles in China, South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Company reported a 67% plunge in profits last month. A stronger Korean won and costly recalls in the US are also to blame for the fall. The company's woes have translated to a drop in its share price, which is trading currently at $89.92 (₩102k, £69.47), down from $131.71 (₩149.4k, £101.76) at the start of the year.

Bayer acquired Monsanto, the controversial US firm that makes Roundup weedkiller, earlier this year, and may wish it never bothered. In August, a Californian jury awarded $289 million (£223.4m) to a school groundskeeper who claimed that glyphosate, the key ingredient in Roundup weedkiller, caused his terminal cancer, opening the floodgates for further litigation. As a consequence, the Bayer share price has fallen from $114.06 (€101.17, £88.19) on 2 January to $75.13 (€66.64, £58.09).

Customers in the US have been dumping retailer Bed Bath & Beyond in favour of more budget-orientated competitors like HomeGoods and Target. Profits have understandably gone south this year, along with the chain's share price, which slumped to an 18-year low in September, and is currently trading at $14.11 (£10.90), down from $22.29 (£17.22) at the start of 2018.

Rite Aid hit rock-bottom earlier this year when its proposed merger with rival chain Albertsons was scuppered by activist shareholders. Shares in the US drugstore company, which is mired in debt, fell to a six-year low last month and are currently trading at $1.31 (£1.01), down from $2.13 (£1.64) at the beginning of the year.

GE has been plagued by a series of unfortunate events this year, including a major gas turbine failure in Texas, and its most recent financials fell well short of Wall Street expectations. Capping off a dismal 2018, the US industrial conglomerate's share price has been on a downward trajectory since 2 January, falling from $17.98 (£13.89) to $8.61 (£6.65) at the time of writing.

Try as it might to stem the flow, Snapchat just can't stop losing users. The multimedia messaging app said goodbye to two million in the third quarter of this year, on top of the three million users who ditched it in Q2. Snapchat's declining popularity is reflected in its parent company's declining stock price which has fallen from $14.95 (£11.55) at the start of the year to $6.71 (£5.18) currently.

Read about the iconic American products that aren't made in the US

Tata Motors has taken the heat this year for its poorly performing subsidiary Jaguar Land Rover, which is grappling with sluggish sales in China, tariff tensions with the US and the threat of a hard Brexit, which threatens to decimate profits. Tata shares have tanked as a result, down from $5.88 (₹424.45, £4.54) at the beginning of January to $2.45 (₹176.75, £189).

Poor sales over the summer and a misguided currency hedge have hammered British streetwear retailer Superdry, which downgraded its profit forecast for 2018 last month by a painful $29.8 million (£23m). The profit downgrade has battered the Superdry share price, which is now trading at £1,003 (£774), down from $2,566 (£1,980) at the start of the year.

Floundering US retailer JCPenney has done nothing but disappoint investors this year, delivering a string of lacklustre financial results. The department store chain is drowning in debt and was forced to close eight stores this year after shuttering 138 in 2017. To cap it all, the company share price has fallen to its lowest level since the Great Depression, down from $3.50 (£2.70) at the start of the year to $1.28 (99p).

Discover the 30 businesses that are booming under the Trump administration

The UK's Debenhams department store chain has endured an annus horribilis so far. The ailing business posted losses of $637.4 million (£492m) in October, the greatest in its 240-year history, and is planning to close 50 stores. As might be expected, the company share price has bombed, down from $45.53 (£35.16) at the beginning of the year to $7.50 (£5.79).

In even deeper trouble, Sears has had a nightmarish 2018. The struggling US retailer filed for bankruptcy protection last month and is closing 140 stores on top of the hundreds that have already shut their doors. Recently delisted from Nasdaq, Sears stock is now worth a humiliating 36 cents (26p), down from $3.78 (£2.92) at the start of 2018, an almost unbelievable drop of 91%.

Read about 30 companies that have seen their share price plummet in 2018