The stock market has had a reasonably positive tone over the past week, and investors looked set to take a breather in Friday’s quiet session. The major indices traded either side of flat during the day, but they never strayed too far from where they ended on Thursday. At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^ DJI -0.15%) and S&P500 (^GSPC -0.08%) gave up some ground, while Nasdaq Compound (^IXIC 0.12%) thumb higher.

Data source: Yahoo! Finance.

A few stocks made substantial upward moves. Kura Sushi (KRUS 33.62%) and iRhythm Technologies (IRTC 23.16%) aren’t household names to most investors, but they’re quickly catching the attention of the wider investing community with their recent performance. Let’s see why both stocks were up more than 20% on Friday.

Kura delivers

Kura Sushi shares jumped 34% on Friday. Investors appreciated the restaurant chain’s latest financial results and hope to see the same as the year progresses.

Kura’s third-quarter fiscal report for the period ending May 31 was surprisingly strong. Revenue more than doubled to $38 million during the period as comparable restaurant sales climbed 65% year-over-year. Although operating profit declined slightly during the period, Kura surprisingly posted a significant loss in the prior year quarter and produced adjusted earnings of $0.05 per share.

CEO Hajime Uba attributed the results to a number of factors. Kura has experienced significant growth throughout its current fiscal year, but its employees’ efforts to minimize the impact of inflation on operations have been instrumental in its success. Additionally, Kura has entered new markets, most recently in the Boston suburb of Watertown, and plans to open at least eight new restaurants before the end of the fiscal year.

After a few years of having to have prepared meals delivered, customers are ready to eat again. Kura is taking advantage of this trend, and its momentum could easily continue for the rest of 2022 and beyond.

iRhythm is looking to get paid

In addition, iRhythm Technologies benefited from a 23% increase in its share price. The digital health specialist has commented on the proposed 2023 Medicare fee schedule for its heart monitoring service Zio XT, and stock analysts have responded favorably.

iRhythm’s comments were relatively obscure, referring to various coding and reimbursement amounts for Medicare patients. The company expects to receive just over $200 for national payment rates under the program. However, various modifiers for certain geographies could lead to a higher range of up to almost $300 in some cases.

These numbers were more favorable than some had expected, and analysts at Truist issued positive comments following the announcement. Truist expected a lower proposed Medicare reimbursement rate, and he now thinks the announcement could serve as a catalyst to push the stock higher. Truist already had a buy rating on iRhythm, with a price target of $165 per share. Even with today’s big gain, that target still leaves around 15% to 20% short-term upside potential for investors.

iRhythm received a big boost in November when Medicare announced its 2022 fee schedule, so it’s no surprise to see similar reception this time around. With so many patients potentially benefiting from the Zio XT product, securing favorable Medicare funding is an important part of iRhythm’s long-term business strategy to become profitable.