So how high is our stock as tipsters? Energy gap as power business falters

That's what happened at Pace, although the company still enjoyed a successful 2010.

The Saltaire-based set-top box maker ended 2009 with a share price of 209p but shed 12.6 per cent to end 2010 at 182.7p.

It reported annual revenues of 1.1bn in March as it revealed plans to buy French company, Bewan Systems, which it said would boost its technological capability to combine internet services with cable television.

The company went on to leap-frog global rivals Motorola and Technicolor to seize top supplier spot. It shipped 17.2 million boxes in 2009 and is expected to ship a record 21 million in 2010.

Pace later reported pre-tax profits of 45.4m in the six months to the end of June, on revenue 21 per cent higher at 635.2m. It said it was close to achieving its eight per cent operating margin target. Chief executive Neil Gaydon said the results would have been slightly better were it not for supply shortages.

In October, shareholders backed its 301m ($475m) acquisition of US broadband firm 2Wire, which will aid its expansion in the home entertainment market.

The company is continuing to benefit from strong demand for digital and high definition television services as people opt to stay at home during the recession and although the share price may have dipped in the last 12 months, the company continues to grow and remains one to watch for the future.

My share tip for 2011 is Emis Group, a healthcare software group based in Leeds which made its debut on the Alternative Investment Market in March.

The firm, which was founded by two North Yorkshire GPs more than 20 years ago, computerises the records of patients of GP surgeries.

In September, chief executive Sean Riddell said he was confident the group could grow despite the cutbacks facing the public sector. The firm reported virtually flat half-year sales. Revenue for the six months to June 30 was 29m, up from 28.9m for the same period last year.

It used some of the money raised through the floatation to launch a new product, Emis Web, which connects GPs with other NHS professionals by enabling secure and shared access to patients' electronic records.

Its priority in 2011 is to build on the foundations it has put in place to increase the scale of the roll-out and is confident that despite the cutbacks being seen within the NHS, it can help healthcare professionals to deliver more for less.

Emis employs about 780 people, including about 500 at its Leeds headquarters. The group also has offices in Wakefield and Canada.