This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

Investors have had a rough go of it in 2022. All three major indices are in a bear market, which is a drawdown of at least 20% from the high. However, many well-known individual stocks are down far more.

Out of the 10 largest stocks by market cap in the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQ: .IXIC), seven are down over 30% from their all-time high, and two are down over 60%. Many growth stocks are down over 80% from their highs.

Investing is easy when most stocks seem only to go up. But when an investment portfolio is down big, it can be challenging to stay even-keeled and focus on the long term. You can’t wave a magic wand and wish a stock to go up. But you can take actionable steps to position your portfolio to outlast a prolonged bear market. Here are three steps worth considering now.

1. Give your portfolio a checkup

Revisiting your holdings is a good practice, no matter the market cycle. But the exercise can be taken a step further in a bear market. Outlasting volatility becomes a little easier if you remember why you bought a company in the first place.

For most quality businesses, the investment thesis probably hasn’t changed between a year ago and today. Granted, margins may be under pressure, earnings may be declining, and growth rates may be slowing. But businesses don’t experience linear growth. Rather, ebbs and flows are simply par for the course.

A good example of a company whose business remains largely the same is Google’s parent company Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL). Due to its dependence on advertising revenue and a strong economy, Alphabet’s business is facing short-term headwinds. However, the investment thesis for Alphabet hasn’t changed at all. Alphabet stock may be down 35% from its all-time high — around the same as the Nasdaq Composite. But that doesn’t mean that Alphabet, as a company, is in trouble.

The same can’t be said for companies that aren’t free-cash-flow positive, are unprofitable, are losing their competitive advantages to larger companies, or depend on debt or equity financing to stay afloat. Rising interest rates and a challenging business climate are headwinds for most companies. But for some, they could lead to unsustainable cash burn and a reason to reconsider owning the company.

2. Update your savings plan

Over time, dollar-cost averaging into your favourite companies has been a tried-and-true method for compounding wealth. Saving more can be a great way to accumulate additional shares of your favourite companies, especially when they are on sale.

Saving more money isn’t easy. But purposeful saving can be achieved by making a list of companies to buy every two weeks, month, or whatever increment of time is best for you.

Bear markets have historically been excellent times to add shares. The problem for most investors is that they don’t have cash on the sidelines to buy stocks on the cheap. However, investors who are still in the asset accumulation stage of their lives — as in they make more money than they spend — are at an advantage because they can put more money to work and likely have that capital go even further.

3. Zoom out and focus on your financial goals

No one likes losing money. But an even worse feeling is losing money in an unexpected way by owning companies that don’t fit your personal risk tolerance or investment time horizon.

Investors that are in the asset accumulation stage of their lives can afford to take more risks by letting an investment thesis play out and outlast the volatility. However, investors in the asset distribution stage of their life are spending more than they are making and therefore tend to be more risk averse.

If you are a retiree with high-risk, high-reward stocks that could lead to missing your financial goals, it may be time to rethink some positions. The same disconnect between financial goals and investment holdings can occur if an investor winds up owning too many stodgy companies when they don’t mind taking on more risk when asset values are lower.

In a bear market, it’s important to remember that investing isn’t about beating the market. It’s about reaching your financial goals in a way that is comfortable, lets you sleep at night, and is aligned with your risk tolerance. In a bull market, it’s easy to be complacent. But bear markets have a habit of catching investors off-guard. For investors whose portfolios are already mostly in line with what they want to own, the best course of action may be to simply do nothing at all.

Resisting fight or flight

It’s human nature to want to do something, anything, to rectify steep losses. But often, heavily trading through a bear market can do more harm than good. By taking action through a portfolio checkup, updating your savings plan, and bridging the gap between your holdings and your financial goals, an investor can feel a sense of empowerment even if their screen continues to be painted red with falling stock prices.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The post Do these 3 things now if your portfolio is down big appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Daniel Foelber has positions in Alphabet (A shares). Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Alphabet (A shares) and Alphabet (C shares). The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Alphabet (A shares) and Alphabet (C shares). The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

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The BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) share price was out of form in September.

During the month, the mining giant’s shares lost 5.1% of their value to end the period at $38.52.

Why did the BHP share price tumble in September?

The BHP share price came under pressure in September amid broad market weakness after rising rates sparked fears of a global recession.

A global recession could be bad news for BHP and other mining shares. That’s because it has the potential to lead to softening demand for commodities, which could in turn put pressure on prices and ultimately mining profits and dividends.

It is worth noting, though, that the BHP share price actually outperformed the ASX 200 index last month, which lost a very disappointing 7.3% of its value.

This relative outperformance is likely to have been driven by BHP’s exposure to one booming commodity – coal.

With coal prices rising to sky high levels and tipped to remain that way for some time to come, some investors are betting on BHP’s earnings holding up despite the current uncertain economic environment.

Are BHP’s shares a buy?

One leading broker that sees a lot of value in the BHP share price is Macquarie.

Late last month, the broker retained its outperform rating and lifted its price target on the miner’s shares to $44.00. This implies potential upside of 14% for investors over the next 12 months.

Macquarie made the move after upgrading its earnings estimates for BHP by approximately 5% through to FY 2026 to reflect higher coal prices.

Another positive is that Macquarie is expecting the Big Australian to pay a fully franked dividend of ~$2.60 per share in FY 2023. This equates to a 6.75% dividend yield, which stretches the total potential return to almost 21%.

The post Here’s what happened to the BHP share price in September appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The Widgie Nickel Ltd (ASX: WIN) share price is having an incredible start of the week.

In early trade, the mineral exploration company’s shares were up as much as 51% to 35.5 cents.

The Widgie Nickel share price has since pulled back a touch but remains up 34% to 31.5 cents at the time of writing.

Why is the Widgie Nickel share price rocketing higher?

Investors have been scrambling to buy the mineral exploration company’s shares today following the announcement of a major discovery.

However, unlike what you might expect from the company’s name, Widgie Nickel has not found nickel. Rather, it has found high-grade lithium bearing pegmatites at the newly named “Faraday prospect” of its Mt Edwards project.

According to the release, lithium bearing pegmatites outcropping over a 600-metre strike with surface expressions of up to 25 meters wide have been identified at the prospect.

Management believes these early stage exploration results are extremely encouraging and provide the company with the opportunity to significantly increase its lithium exploration activity within the highly prospective tenement package.

Field work is expected to commence immediately to drill test high-priority targets at the Faraday prospect as well as detailed mapping, soil and rock chip sampling across the Widgie tenure.

‘Couldn’t be a better outcome’

Widgie Nickel’s managing director, Steve Norregaard, was very pleased with the news. He said:

This initial reconnaissance work identifying high grade spodumene over a significant strike length couldn’t be a better outcome for Widgie. To think we have 170,000t of contained nickel and we now can lay claim to hosting complementary and widespread lithium pegmatites in this world class lithium corridor.

Widgie looks forward with great anticipation to getting a drill rig on this highly prospective target which will only complement the existing drilling effort on our nickel resources.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The Bubs Australia Ltd (ASX: BUB) share price is having a decent start to the week.

In morning trade, the junior infant formula company’s shares are up 2% to 51.5 cents.

Why is the Bubs share price rising?

The Bubs share price is pushing higher today after the company released another update on its US operations.

According to the release, the company has lodged a letter of intent to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This is in response to the FDA Guidance for Industry – Infant Formula Transition Plan for Exercise of Enforcement Discretion (Transition Plan) that was issued on 1 October 2022.

The release notes that the Transition Plan provides a clear regulatory pathway and framework of requirements for Bubs to gain permanent access without interruption to supply to American families.

If all goes to plan and Bubs makes meaningful progress towards compliance with the Transition Plan, the FDA will allow the company to continue to supply the US market until October 2025.

Management commentary

Bubs’ founder and CEO, Kristy Carr, commented:

We are pleased to announce confirmation of our continued commitment to work with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and welcome this important FDA announcement which provides a clear pathway for a select number of safe, nutritious, international infant formula brands to secure permanent regulatory approval.

This commitment and the FDA’s announcement also mean American parents who are already safely using Bubs Infant Formula products, as well as our retail partners now stocking our formula in 6,500 stores across 42 states, can remain confident in ongoing supply, without interruption, providing more choices for American families seeking safe, clean nutrition for their children.

Importantly, the FDA announcement also provides continued support for the ongoing expansion of our U.S. distribution footprint, as we look forward to launching Bubs Infant Formula products in various new retail groups in the months ahead.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended BUBS AUST FPO. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

The stock market sell-off of 2022 led to a sharp decline in the value of some high-profile names that once traded at (or near) the eye-popping market cap of $1 trillion.

Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) and Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) are two big tech names that became trillion-dollar companies before the broad market sell-off dented their market caps significantly. Tesla, for instance, currently has a market cap of $840 billion. But the electric vehicle specialist was trading above the $1 trillion market cap milestone in October 2021.

Similarly, Meta Platforms stock has fallen off a cliff, and it now sports a market cap of $366 billion. The social media giant had hit a $1 trillion market cap in June last year when it was known as Facebook. Meanwhile, high-flying semiconductor company Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) was close to hitting the $1 trillion milestone at the end of last year, when its market cap stood at over $800 billion. But the 58% decline in Nvidia stock this year has brought its market cap down to $304 billion.

But don’t be surprised to see these three tech giants regain the $1 trillion market cap milestone within the next decade, or maybe sooner. Let’s see why that may be the case.

1. Tesla is close to regaining the $1 trillion mark

Of the three companies discussed, Tesla is the closest to the $1 trillion milestone. And the company could hit that mark well within the next 10 years given its impressive growth and the massive opportunity in electric vehicles (EVs).

Tesla is a high-growth company whose revenue shot up 42% year over year in the second quarter of 2022 to $16.9 billion. What’s more, the company is also enjoying solid pricing power, as an increase in the average selling price of its vehicles led to an improvement of 358 basis points in its operating margin during the quarter to 14.6%. The solid top-line growth and the margin expansion led to 57% year-over-year growth in adjusted earnings to $2.27 per share in Q2.

With the global electric vehicle market expected to clock a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 29% through 2030 and hit annual sales of 31.1 million units as compared to 2.5 million units in 2020, Tesla has a lot of room to sustain its terrific growth. Of course, the growing competition in the EV space will be a challenge for Tesla, but it is worth noting that the company is successfully growing despite that.

Tesla’s share of battery electric vehicles in key markets such as China, Europe, and the U.S. has dropped to 15.6% in the second quarter of 2022 from 25% in the second quarter of 2020. However, the company’s deliveries have increased by a massive 180% during that period. Tesla delivered nearly 255,000 vehicles in the second quarter of 2022, compared to nearly 91,000 a couple of years prior.

Given that Tesla is aggressively expanding its capacity to take advantage of the secular growth in EVs, it is not surprising to see that analysts are expecting its earnings to increase at an annual pace of 55% over the next five years. Additionally, Tesla’s median Wall Street price target of $329 per share points toward a 23% upside from the current levels over the next 12 months, taking this electric vehicle company’s market cap beyond $1 trillion.

2. Meta Platforms has work to do, but it could get there

Meta Platforms’ spectacular fall over the past year or so can be attributed to multiple factors. A slowdown in ad spending, surging inflation, and macroeconomic uncertainty have created an unfavorable operating environment for the company. That’s why analysts expect Meta’s top line to remain flat in 2022 at $118 billion. The company’s earnings are expected to drop to $9.87 per share this year from $13.77 in 2021.   

What’s more, Meta’s move to reduce its expenses for 2022 by keeping a handle on hiring, or even resorting to layoffs, indicates that the social media giant is in for tough times. But there are a few reasons why Meta’s tough times won’t last forever, and the company should eventually come out of its slump in the long run.

For instance, annual digital ad spending is expected to jump from $521 billion in 2021 to $876 billion in 2026, according to eMarketer. Along with Alphabet, Meta is the other massive player in the digital ad spending space, with the two companies holding a combined market share of 53.2% last year. Meta alone generated $115 billion in advertising revenue last year, which means that it controlled around 22% of this space as per eMarketer’s industry revenue estimate.

Of course, growing competition from the likes of Amazon and Apple is expected to put Meta’s market share under pressure. But the latter’s move to make money from advertising in emerging niches such as the metaverse could help it sustain its solid share and improve its top line. This explains why analysts expect Meta’s revenue to start growing once again from next year and accelerate in 2024.

META Revenue Estimates for Current Fiscal Year data by YCharts

If Meta retains a 20% share of the digital ad spending market in 2026, then its top line could increase to $175 billion based on eMarketer’s forecast. This excludes the potential gains from emerging catalysts such as the metaverse. Multiplying this potential revenue estimate by Meta’s five-year average sales multiple of nine would translate into a market cap of well above $1 trillion. But if we decide to use a lower sales multiple to account for the competition that could arise in the next few years — let’s say a price-to-sales ratio of five after five years — Meta would be close to hitting the milestone it had achieved last year.

In all, Meta looks well-placed to become a trillion-dollar company over the long run, which is why buying the stock looks like a good idea as it is trading at just 11 times trailing earnings right now.

3. Nvidia’s multiple catalysts could make it a trillion-dollar company

Nvidia is in a rough patch this year thanks to the slowdown in demand for graphics cards used in gaming personal computers (PCs), and it recently stumbled upon a new headwind in the data center business after the U.S. government imposed restrictions on sales of chips to China.

Investors, however, would do well to focus on the bigger picture. That’s because Nvidia is the leading player in a couple of massive markets that are built for long-term growth, and it is also pursuing opportunities in emerging areas such as automotive and digital twins.

For instance, Nvidia controlled 79% of the market for gaming graphics cards in the second quarter of 2022. This market is in bad shape right now thanks to an oversupply caused by weak demand and higher supply. However, the situation should improve in the long run, as sales of gaming graphics cards are expected to increase at an annual pace of 14% through 2026, presenting a solid opportunity for Nvidia to grow revenue thanks to its impressive market share.

Meanwhile, Nvidia’s growing influence in nascent areas such as digital twins could supercharge the company’s long-term growth by opening a whole new opportunity to tap. All this explains why Nvidia’s earnings are still expected to clock annual growth of 23% for the next five years despite the challenges it has faced in 2022, according to consensus estimates.

Applying analysts’ projected earnings growth to its current fiscal year’s estimated earnings of $3.37 per share would translate into a bottom line of nearly $9.50 per share after five years. Multiplying the anticipated earnings after five years with Nvidia’s five-year-average forward earnings multiple of 40 gives us a $380 price target after five years. That points toward 210% gains from the current levels.

As Nvidia has a market cap of $304 billion now, a 210% gain in five years means that the company would be worth close to $950 billion in 2027. And if we consider that this tech giant has solid catalysts that could help sustain its outstanding growth for the next decade, it wouldn’t be surprising to see it attain a $1 trillion market cap within the next 10 years.   

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

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Harsh Chauhan has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Alphabet (C shares), Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Inc., Nvidia, and Tesla. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended the following options: long March 2023 $120 calls on Apple and short March 2023 $130 calls on Apple. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Alphabet (C shares), Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Inc., and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

This article was originally published on Fool.com. All figures quoted in US dollars unless otherwise stated.

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Are you looking for ASX 200 dividend shares to buy? If you are, then you may want to check out the two listed below that have been named as buys.

Here’s why analysts rate them highly right now:

Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd (ASX: ANZ)

ANZ Bank could be an ASX 200 dividend share to buy right now.

That’s the view of analysts at Citi, which believe that the bank will experience a boost to its earnings and dividend in FY 2023 and FY 2024 thanks to cash rate rises.

In addition, Citi notes that ANZ has signed an agreement to acquire the banking operations of Suncorp Group Ltd (ASX: SUN) for $4.9 billion. The broker believes the deal meets a strategic objective and is being undertaken at a reasonable price.

As for dividends, Citi is forecasting fully franked dividends of $1.44 per share in FY 2022 and $1.65 per share in FY 2023. Based on the current ANZ share price of $22.87, this will mean yields of 6.3% and 7.2%, respectively.

Citi currently has a buy rating and $29.00 price target on the bank’s shares.

Coles Group Ltd (ASX: COL)

This supermarket giant could be another ASX 200 dividend share to consider buying.

It could be a top option in the current environment thanks to its defensive qualities and positive exposure to inflation. This and the successful execution of trade plans, led to Coles reporting a 2% increase in sales revenue to $39,369 million and a 4.3% lift in net profit after tax to $1,048 million in FY 2022.

Since then, the company has announced a deal to sell its Coles Express business for $300 million.

The team at Morgans notes that this has freed up balance sheet capacity and allows the company to now focus on its core business, which has been losing market share to rivals.

Another positive is that the broker continues to forecast some attractive dividend yields in the coming years. It is forecasting fully franked dividends of 65 cents per share dividend in FY 2023 and a 66 cents per share dividend in FY 2024.

Based on the current Coles share price of $16.43, this will mean yields of 3.9% and 4%, respectively, for investors.

Morgans also sees plenty of upside for its shares with its add rating and $20.00 price target.

The post Here are 2 ASX 200 dividend shares that analysts have slapped buy ratings on appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has positions in and has recommended COLESGROUP DEF SET. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF (ASX: VGS) is having a bad year in 2022. Don’t forget that it finished up in the COVID-hit year of 2020.

So far in 2022, the Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF is down by close to 20%. Ouch.

For an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that offers a lot of diversification with exposure to different countries, currencies and industries, that’s a big fall.

Why is the Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF down so much? It comes down to what’s going on with the holdings inside the ETF.

What affects an ETF’s performance?

An ETF is a fund that enables us to buy a group of assets with one investment. With just one name an investor can get exposure to dozens, hundreds or even thousands of businesses.

The performance of those businesses then dictates the performance of the ETF.

For example, if business A is 10% of the portfolio and goes up 20% then this would add 2% to the portfolio’s return. If business B is 5% of the portfolio and goes down 10% then this would detract 0.5% from the ETF’s portfolio return. And so on.

If the overall underlying portfolio goes down in value, taking into account their position sizing in the ETF, then the price of the ETF goes down too.

What is happening to the Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF?

This index is invested in over 1,400 businesses. So, it has plenty of diversification. But, if most of them fall at the same time, then investors will suffer from price declines.

What’s difficult at the moment is that more than 70% of the ETF’s weighting is to businesses in the United States.

A number of the US companies in the portfolio are tech shares or tech-related. The biggest five positions in the Vanguard Index International Shares ETF at the end of August were Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon and Tesla.

Inflation in the US has been particularly strong. Central bankers don’t want this situation to continue, it’s not helpful for economic stability. To fight this, the US Federal Reserve is increasing the interest rate to take some heat out of the economy.

This has been painful for the US share market. Just look at the S&P 500 Index (SP: .INX), which is down by 25% in 2022. This is a popular and widely-followed index of 500 US-listed businesses.

So, the US portion of the ETF’s portfolio (which accounts for more than two-thirds of the allocation) is having a rough time. The rest of the global share market is seeing volatility as well.

Why do interest rates matter?

I think that one of the best explainers about interest rate impacts on assets comes from legendary investor Warren Buffett:

The value of every business, the value of a farm, the value of an apartment house, the value of any economic asset, is 100% sensitive to interest rates because all you are doing in investing is transferring some money to somebody now in exchange for what you expect the stream of money to be, to come in over a period of time, and the higher interest rates are the less that present value is going to be. So every business by its nature… its intrinsic valuation is 100% sensitive to interest rates.

Time will tell when the Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF price hits a bottom.

The post Why has the Vanguard Index International Shares ETF been getting hammered lately? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Alphabet (C shares), Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Tesla, and Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has recommended the following options: long March 2023 $120 calls on Apple and short March 2023 $130 calls on Apple. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Alphabet (A shares), Alphabet (C shares), Amazon, Apple, and Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The Woodside Energy Group Ltd (ASX: WDS) share price has been one of the strong performers in S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) in 2022.

Woodside is one of the world’s largest oil and gas shares. It has a market capitalisation of $60 billion according to the ASX.

The business has become a lot larger this year. Woodside bought the oil and gas business of BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP), though being bigger doesn’t automatically mean that the share price will go up.

How much $1,000 would have grown into

In 2022, the Woodside share price has risen by around 40%. Though, it’s worth saying that past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance, particularly with resource companies.

The 40% return makes the calculation pretty easy. If I’d bought $1,000 of Woodside shares then this would have turned into $1,400.

But, that’s just the capital growth of the business.

Don’t forget that Woodside also pays large dividends to shareholders as well.

The dividends that the energy giant has declared since the start of 2022 equate to a dividend yield of 14% (at the start of the year), excluding franking credits.

That would add an extra $140 to the total return, so Woodside investors would have a total of $1,540 from investing $1,000 in the company at the start of the year.

Why has the Woodside share price performed so well?

Investors were expecting a strong result from Woodside in the 2022 half-year result as the ‘realised’ oil price more than doubled year over year to $96.40 per barrel of oil.

Woodside Energy CEO Meg O’Neill had this to say at the time:

Our first results since the completion of the merger with BHP’s petroleum business highlight the increased financial and operational strength delivered by our larger, geographically diverse portfolio of high-quality operating assets.

Production for the half year was 19% higher at 54.9 million barrels of oil equivalent, benefiting from the contribution in the month of June of the former BHP assets and improved reliability at our LNG facilities.

FY22 half-year operating revenue rose 132% year over year to US$5.81 billion and underlying net profit after tax (NPAT) was US$1.82 billion, an increase of 414%.

Aside from higher prices, Woodside is also benefiting from the BHP merger, with the bigger scale of the business. At the end of August, Woodside said it had already delivered $100 million of the post-merger synergies – it’s actually targeting at least $400 million of annual synergies, which will improve profitability.

Improved profitability can help the Woodside share price in the long run, though it will likely still be influenced by movements in the resource price.

The post If I’d invested $1,000 in Woodside shares at the start of 2022, here’s what I’d have now appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Monday
• ASX 200 dividend shares suffer September sell-off
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Friday
• Why Cogstate, Global Lithium, Premier, and Woodside shares are charging higher
• Why is the Woodside share price on the rise today?

Motley Fool contributor Tristan Harrison has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The S&P/ASX All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) had another month to forget in September, retreating 7.6% against a backdrop of rising interest rates and inflation woes.

But while the market was feeling worse for wear, some ASX All Ords shares suffered even steeper falls. Let’s take a look.

MoneyMe Ltd (ASX: MME)

MoneyMe took out the unfortunate title of the All Ords’ worst performer in September. Its share price was nearly cut in half, tumbling by 47.8% to 46 cents.

This was triggered by a $20 million capital raising, which was priced at a 28% discount to the last traded MoneyMe share price at the time. The company intends to use this money for growth, supporting debt facilities and transaction costs.

MoneyMe announced this capital raising alongside its FY22 results, which saw revenue jump 148% to $143 million, aided by a mix of organic and acquisitive growth. 

However, the company continues to burn through cash. While its net loss after tax blew out from $8 million in the prior year to $50 million in FY22. 

Hastings Technology Metals Ltd (ASX: HAS)

Similarly, ASX All Ords share Hastings Technology also came under pressure in September on the back of a capital raising. Hastings shares suffered a steep 36.6% fall across the month to finish at $3.46.

The company announced a $110 million two-tranche placement at an offer price of $4.40 per share. This represented a 19% discount to the last traded Hastings share price of $5.41.

Subject to shareholder approval, this will result in roughly 25 million new shares being issued, nearly one-quarter of the company’s existing share count.

Proceeds from the cap raise will be used to advance the development of Yangibana, a rare earths project located in the Gascoyne region of Western Australia.

PointsBet Holdings Ltd (ASX: PBH)

Fresh off being kicked out of the ASX 200, the PointsBet share price drudged up a 35.9% loss in September. to close out the month at $1.86.

It appears investors weren’t impressed with the company’s FY22 results. Revenue jumped by 52% to $296 million but operating expenses went through the roof, causing PointsBet’s net loss to balloon by 43% to $268 million.

PointsBet shares continue to be among the most shorted on the ASX.

Link Administration Holdings Ltd (ASX: LNK)

The Link share price was also battered and bruised last month after the $2.5 billion takeover with Dye & Durham finally collapsed.

Link shares tumbled 33.5% across the month to finish at $2.86, a long way from the takeover offer price of $4.81.

After several twists and turns over many months, the deal failed to satisfy three conditions necessary for court approval. The most significant relates to the Woodford Matters and associated approval from the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority.

Link adjourned the second court hearing multiple times but in the end, time ran out. With the outstanding conditions not satisfied, the court dismissed the proceedings and ultimately, the deal fell through.

New Century Resources Ltd (ASX: NCZ)

Finally, ASX All Ords share New Century’s woes continued in September as its shares crumbled by 33.1% to $1.07.

For those unfamiliar, New Century describes itself as a mining, tailings management, and economic rehabilitation company. It’s focused on sustainably producing metal from resource assets while rehabilitating legacy impacts on the environment. 

Investors didn’t appear pleased with New Century’s FY22 results. Revenue leapt by 47% to $408 million. But fair value adjustments and higher production costs led to the company’s net loss more than doubling to $28 million.

The post These were the 5 worst-performing ASX All Ords shares in September appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• These were the worst performers on the ASX 200 in September
• Why Bubs, Iress, Link, and Polynovo shares are dropping today
• 5 things to watch on the ASX 200 on Thursday
• Here are the top 10 ASX 200 shares today
• Why BHP, Costa, Link, and Syrah shares are dropping

Motley Fool contributor Cathryn Goh has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has positions in and has recommended Link Administration Holdings Ltd and Pointsbet Holdings Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Pointsbet Holdings Ltd. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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The Core Lithium Ltd (ASX: CXO) share price has returned from its trading halt and sunk into the red.

In morning trade, the lithium miner’s shares are down almost 8% to $1.02.

Why is the Core Lithium share price sliding today?

The Core Lithium share price is sinking today after the company announced the completion of its institutional placement.

According to the release, the company has raised $100 million before costs via a fully underwritten placement of ~97.1 million shares at $1.03 per new share.

This represents a discount of 6.8% to where the Core Lithium share price was trading prior to its halt.

Management advised that the placement received significant demand from numerous, high quality domestic and offshore institutions. It feels this provides a strong endorsement of its accelerated growth strategy at the Finniss Lithium Project.

It also highlights that it has significantly strengthened its balance sheet, which will enable Core Lithium to fast-track exploration programs, expedite capital development initiatives, and pursue further organic and inorganic growth opportunities.

Lithium sale

The company also made another announcement, which has failed to prop up the Core Lithium share price.

According to the release, the company has completed the first sale of a spodumene DSO product (1.4% Li2O) from its Finniss Lithium Project via a digital exchange platform. A cargo of 15,000 dry metric tonnes (dmt) DSO was tendered on a CIF basis to several pre-screened participants active in the lithium-ion battery supply chain.

Demand for the spodumene DSO material was strong, which led to Core Lithium commanding a sale price of US$951/dmt. The shipment of the cargo is scheduled for late in the fourth quarter of 2022 from the Darwin Port.

Core Lithium’s CEO, Gareth Manderson, commented:

The completion of the spodumene DSO tender is an excellent result for Core and indicates the strong demand for lithium.

The post Why is the Core Lithium share price sinking 8% today? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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More reading

• Here are the big ASX lithium share winners and losers on Friday
• Why has the Core Lithium share price just been halted?
• Why is this key investor selling down its Core Lithium shares?
• Why Cedar Woods, Core Lithium, Myer, and Telix shares are sinking
• Why is the Core Lithium share price sinking 9% today?

Motley Fool contributor James Mickleboro has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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