The Critical Resources Ltd (ASX: CRR) share price is exploding higher on Wednesday following a completed acquisition by the company.

At the time of writing, the emerging copper and gold development company’s shares are up 19.51% to 4.9 cents. This means that over the past week, its shares have now risen by more than 30%.

Critical Resources formally acquires Lithium Project

Investors are fighting to get a hold of the Critical Resources share price after the company announced its latest update.

According to this morning’s release, Critical Resources advised it has completed the acquisition of the Mavis Lake lithium project.

Located in Ontario, Canada, the project lies within a well-established lithium province close to highway and railway transportation arteries. Previous drilling results at the site have yielded positive assays which present significant exploration potential.

The region is littered with other projects which are also situated within the vicinity of Marvis Lake.

The key terms of the transaction consist of a $1.5 million cash payment split evenly to Essential Metals Ltd (ASX: ESS) and Canadian-listed International Lithium Corporation. In addition, a further $1.5 million payment will be made in the form of 68 million Critical Resources shares. These will be issued at a price of 2.2 cents apiece, again evenly split between Essential Metals and International Lithium.

Should certain milestone targets be reached, up to $3 million will be paid in cash depending on the definition of the Mineral Resources estimate. In the event that the relevant milestones are not met within 5 years, the obligation to reward the vendors will expire.

Critical Resources managing director, Alex Biggs commented:

We are very excited to complete the acquisition of the Mavis Lake lithium project.

We have no doubt that the Project will add significant value to the business moving forward. Our strategy in 2022 is to begin exploration drilling as soon as possible once permitting is completed. We have multiple targets to explore with a view to achieving, over time, the milestones set out by the vendors of 5.0 million and 10.0 million tonnes.

About the Critical Resources share price

Since this time last year, the Critical Resources share price has accelerated to achieve gains of almost 110%. The company’s shares hit a 52-week high of 5.4 cents in November, before treading lower in the following month.

Critical Resources commands a market capitalisation of roughly $50.29 million and has approximately 1.09 billion shares on issue.

The post Here’s why the Critical Resources (ASX:CRR) share price is rocketing 20% appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• The 5 best ASX lithium stocks of 2021
• The Noxopharm (ASX:NOX) share price is jumping 6% after announcing a new CEO
• Here’s why 2021 was a stellar year for the Vanguard International Shares ETF (ASX:VGS)
• Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price sinks 5% to new 52-week low
• The 5 best ASX energy shares of 2021 unmasked

Motley Fool contributor Aaron Teboneras 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 Bruce Jackson.

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One of the hottest areas of the market in 2021 was the lithium sector. Huge returns were generated for investors over the 12 months as demand for the white metal soared thanks to its use in electric vehicle batteries and renewable energy.

But which ASX lithium stocks were the best ones to own in 2021? Listed below are five lithium shares included in the All Ordinaries index that provided mouth-watering returns for investors last year.

Novonix Ltd (ASX: NVX)

The Novonix share price was on fire and recorded a 660% gain in 2021. A key catalyst for this rise was news that the lithium-ion battery technology company signed a deal with Phillips 66. The US energy giant acquired a 16% stake in Novonix for US$150 million and believes its investment will support its development of an entirely domestic supply chain for the growing US electric vehicle (EV) market and other energy storage systems.

Liontown Resources Limited (ASX: LTR)

The Liontown Resources share price was some way behind with its impressive gain of 388%. Excitement around the lithium developer’s Kathleen Valley lithium project in Western Australia helped drive its shares higher. The project’s DFS highlighted production of 658ktpa SC6 with potential for conversion into 86ktpa lithium hydroxide.

AVZ Minerals Ltd (ASX: AVZ)

The AVZ Minerals share price was a very strong performer and rose 356% over the 12 months. There were concerns in recent years that this lithium developer’s Manono project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo was not economically viable and doomed to failure. However, a significant rise in lithium prices has suddenly changed all that. This ASX lithium stock is due to make a final investment decision on the project in the near future.

Vulcan Energy Resources Ltd (ASX: VUL)

The Vulcan share price managed to record a 277% gain in 2021 despite being attacked by a short seller. Investors appear optimistic that Vulcan’s Germany-based Zero Carbon Lithium Project will benefit greatly from demand for lithium from European car manufacturers.

Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS)

Finally, the Pilbara Minerals share price continued its impressive run and charged 268% higher in 2021. Pilbara Minerals is the only one in the group that is already producing lithium and benefiting from sky high prices. Following last year’s gain, the company’s market capitalisation has now ballooned to almost $10.5 billion. This makes it the largest lithium stock on the ASX.

The post The 5 best ASX lithium stocks of 2021 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• How the Pilbara Minerals (ASX:PLS) share price surged 268% higher in 2021
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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 Bruce Jackson.

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The Noxopharm Ltd (ASX: NOX) share price has leapt 6% this morning after announcing a change in executive leadership.

The move coincides with the drug development company’s goal to position itself on the global stage.

At the time of writing, the Noxopharm share price is 6.1% higher, at 43.5 cents apiece.

New blood to take the reins

This morning, Noxopharm announced its new year’s resolution would be to make 2022 the year of “generational change”. It’s appointed its current chief medical officer Dr Gisela Mautner as its new CEO.

Dr Mautner will take over from current CEO Dr Graham Kelly from 1 February.

Comment from current CEO

Dr Kelly said Dr Mautner’s experience in the industry would equip the company with the ability to position itself for “a valuable partnering opportunity”.

Dr Kelly said:

The company is in the process of transiting from an early-stage biotech company into a serious bio-pharma company looking to make its mark on the world stage.

Having worked alongside Gisela for several years now, I have full confidence in her ability to achieve that objective. I believe she will make an outstanding CEO.

Dr Kelly will transition from an executive to a consultant role. In doing so, he will remain involved in the company’s future — remaining its largest shareholder, board member, and inventor of much of the company’s Intellectual Property.

Noxopharm is an Australian based biopharmaceutical company with the primary focus of treating cancer and septic shock.

The company is developing its lead drug candidate Veyonda, currently in the second phase of its clinical trials.

Noxopharm share price snapshot

In 2021, the Noxopharm share price dropped by around 20%. It saw its sharpest drop in mid-December, just a few days after enrolling the first group of patients for the first clinical trial of Veyonda as an experimental cancer treatment.

The drop marked the share price’s 52-week low.

As of today, the company has a market capitalisation of more than $125 billion with around 292 million shares issued.

The post The Noxopharm (ASX:NOX) share price is jumping 6% after announcing a new CEO appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

More reading

• Here’s why the Noxopharm (ASX: NOX) share price leapt 7% today

Motley Fool contributor Alice de Bruin 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 Bruce Jackson.

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So 2021 was a great year for ASX shares. Over the year just passed, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) managed a rough 13% rise. That explains why the ASX’s most popular exchange-traded fund (ETF), the Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF (ASX: VAS), managed a healthy 16.7% or so return over 2021. But what about Vanguard’s second-most popular ASX ETF, the Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF (ASX: VGS)?

This Vanguard ETF is a different kettle of fish to VAS or the ASX 200. That’s because it doesn’t hold or invest in ASX shares at all. Instead, VGS holds an enormous basket of international shares that are domiciled in advanced economies around the world. More than 70% of its weighted holdings are US companies, but this ETF also has exposure to Japan, Canada, the United Kingdom, Europe, Hong Kong and Singapore.

As you might expect, its largest holdings are also US-dominated. We have Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) taking out the top spot, with Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT), Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) and Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) behind it.

But overall, the Vanguard International Shares ETF holds close to 1,500 individual companies from around the world. That’s some hefty diversification!

But time to get out of the weeds and into the numbers. So how did VGS perform over 2021?

How did the VGS ETF stack up over 2021?

Well, units of this ETF began last year at a price of $84.12 each. They finished up last Friday at $106.90 per unit. That’s a capital gain of 27.08%. But we also need to take into account VGS’s dividend distributions.

VGS pays a quarterly dividend distribution, which amounted to approximately $1.87 per unit over 2021. That gives the Vanguard International Shares ETF a yield of 1.75% on its 2021 closing unit price. So, you can bump up that 27.08% return to roughly 28.8%.

That’s objectively a very pleasing return for any investment over one year. But it would be especially pleasing for investors given that the ASX 200 and the Vanguard Australian Shares ETF returned less than half of that figure last year.

So there you have it, VGS’s performance for 2021. It will be interesting to see if this popular ASX ETF can beat out VAS and the ASX 200 again in 2022.

The post Here’s why 2021 was a stellar year for the Vanguard International Shares ETF (ASX:VGS) appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Teresa Kersten, an employee of LinkedIn, a Microsoft subsidiary, 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 Sebastian Bowen owns Tesla. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and has recommended Microsoft and Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended 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 Bruce Jackson.

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The Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) share price has continued its poor run on Wednesday.

In morning trade, the buy now pay later (BNPL) provider’s shares have dropped a further 5% to a new 52-week low of $79.80.

This means the Afterpay share price is now trading 50% lower than its 52-week high of $160.05.

Why is the Afterpay share price falling today?

As readers will be aware, Afterpay shareholders recently voted in favour of the takeover proposal from Block (previously named Square).

However, unlike the recent acquisition of Vifor Pharma for $17 billion in cash by CSL Limited (ASX: CSL), Block’s takeover of Afterpay is an all-scrip affair. This means that the overall value of the transaction is not fixed and will rise and fall with the Block share price.

And unfortunately for Afterpay shareholders, the Block share price has been falling hard in recent months. So much so, the value of the takeover proposal has dwindled from $39 billion originally to $24.7 billion.

What’s happening with the Block share price?

Overnight the Block share price dropped as much as 8% to a 52-week low of US$151.02 before recovering to be down 4.5% to US$156.33.

This means its shares have now lost 37% of their value in the five months that have passed since announcing the takeover deal.

There are a number of reasons for this. One of the most recent catalysts has been concerns about potential regulatory scrutiny in the BNPL sector in the United States.

What’s next for Afterpay’s shares?

In the not so distant future the Afterpay share price will no longer be trading on the Australian share market.

Once the Block transaction completes, shareholders will receive 0.375 shares of Block Class A common stock for each Afterpay share they hold. Shareholders will just have to choose whether to own US listed Block shares or Block CHESS Depositary Interests (CDIs) that will be listed on the ASX.

The post Afterpay (ASX:APT) share price sinks 5% to new 52-week low 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. owns and has recommended Afterpay Limited, Block, Inc., and CSL Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended Afterpay Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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ASX energy shares broadly enjoyed a strong year in 2021.

The energy companies were buoyed by rising energy demand fuelled by the global reopening amid limited new supplies coming online, driving up the prices for crude oil, LNG, and coal.

Brent crude oil, for example, kicked off last year trading at US$51.80 per barrel. Brent reached highs of some US$85.53 per barrel on 22 October. It finished the year at US$77.78 per barrel, 50% higher than where it began.

Narrowing our focus on those companies listed on the S&P/ASX 300 Index (ASX: XKO), the top 5 ASX energy shares returned a combined average of 54.6% over the 12 months. That compares to a gain of 13.4% posted by the ASX 300 over that same time.

So, without further ado, here are the top 5 ASX 300 energy shares.

Coming in at number 5 and number 4

The fifth best ASX energy share to hold in 2021 was Viva Energy Group Ltd (ASX: VEA).

Viva Energy’s share price gained 15.8% during the calendar year. The company sells fuel and specialty products through its retail and commercial channels across Australia.

Viva closed the year trading for $2.35 per share. With approximately 1.55 billion shares outstanding, Viva has a current market cap of $3.63 billion. Atop the share price appreciation, Viva Energy pays a 1.80% trailing dividend yield, fully franked.

Moving on to the fourth best performing ASX energy share of the year just past, we have New Hope Corporation Limited (ASX: NHC), gaining an impressive 57% over the 12 months.

Based in South East Queensland, New Hope has a strong focus on coal production along with some oil projects.

New Hope closed on 31 December at $2.23 per share. With some 832.4 million shares outstanding, it has a current market cap of $1.86 billion. New Hope pays a trailing dividend yield of 4.93%, 100% franked.

The third and second best performers of 2021

The third and second best performing ASX energy shares of 2021 are almost evenly matched.

Coming in third place by a nose is Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC), which gained 58.2% over the year.

Whitehaven is the biggest pure play coal miner on the ASX, with numerous large mines operating in the Gunnedah Coal Basin of New South Wales.

Whitehaven finished the year trading for $2.61 per share. With 1.03 billion shares outstanding, it has a current market cap of $2.70 billion. Whitehaven pays a 0.83% dividend yield, unfranked.

Edging out the coal giant as the second best ASX energy share to buy and hold in 2021 is Karoon Energy Ltd (ASX: KAR). Karoon gained 58.5% during the year, closing at $1.68 per share.

The oil and gas explorer and producer has projects in Australia, Brazil, and Peru.

With 556.2 million shares outstanding, Karoon has a current market cap of $978.9 million. Karoon does not pay a dividend.

Which brings us to…

2021’s best performing ASX energy share

By far the best performing ASX 300 energy share of 2021 was Senex Energy Ltd (ASX: SXY), which gained a whopping 83.3% over the course of the year.

The oil and gas explorer and producer, with projects in South Australia and Queensland, will certainly have benefited from rising energy costs over the year.

Senex closed on 31 December trading for $4.62 per share. With 185.3 million shares outstanding, the company has a market cap of $855.9 million. Senex pays a 1.95% trailing dividend yield, unfranked.

The post The 5 best ASX energy shares of 2021 unmasked appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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• Why the Whitehaven Coal (ASX:WHC) share price is jumping 9% today
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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 Bruce Jackson.

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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.

Just as Tesla‘s (NASDAQ: TSLA) blowout fourth-quarter vehicle deliveries are grabbing headlines, Morgan Stanley‘s Adam Jonas is focusing on 2022. The company’s staggering momentum, he says, now makes two million deliveries this year possible.

If Tesla were to achieve this, the company’s growth rate would accelerate compared to its already-impressive growth in 2021 and deliveries would more than double.

Let’s take a look at why Jonas thinks two million deliveries are now within the realm of reason.

The path to 2 million deliveries

At this point we’d still describe [two million deliveries in 2022] a stretch target but one that looks far more realistic following [Tesla’s fourth-quarter] deliveries,” said the Morgan Stanley analyst in a note to investors on Monday. 

Jonas’ belief that this stretch target is possible is based on two main ideas.

First, of course, is Tesla’s incredible momentum in Q4. The company grew deliveries 71% year over year to 308,600, blowing past analysts’ estimates. Even on a sequential basis, the growth was very strong. Deliveries increased 28% between the company’s previous quarterly record of 241,391 just three months earlier. And that figure was up from 201,304 three months before that. Growing like this during a period of some of the worst automobile supply constraints in history speaks volumes about Tesla’s momentum.

The second reason Jonas is so optimistic about Tesla’s potential in 2022 is the company’s new factories. After spending essentially all of 2021 building a new factory in Berlin, Germany, and another in Austin, Texas, these two new factories are just now coming online. Jonas believes that once these factories are ramped up to full production capacity, Tesla will have a global installed production capacity of nearly three million units annually, up from a capacity of just over one million units annually at the end of the company’s third quarter. Of course, it’s going to take a while for these two new factories to get to full capacity.

Don’t expect guidance like this from Tesla

After years of regularly missing its production and delivery targets, electric-car maker Tesla has recently become conservative when it comes to its annual delivery guidance. Last year, for instance, management simply said it expected deliveries to grow more than 50% in 2021. This would imply about 750,000 or more deliveries, up from just under 500,000 in 2020. But actual deliveries soared 87% year over year to more than 936,000 — and this occurred during a challenging supply and logistics environment.

Tesla may provide conservative guidance again for 2022. Indeed, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the company once again guide for deliveries to grow 50% or more. While this would be a far cry from Jonas’ bull case for as many as two million deliveries, it speaks to Tesla’s strengths that we’re calling a forecast for 50% growth conservative — especially when you consider that that growth would be on top of 87% growth in the prior year. 

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

The post Could Tesla deliveries double this year? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Daniel Sparks has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia’s parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. owns and recommends Tesla. 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 Bruce Jackson.

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

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It was a year to forget for the Appen Ltd (ASX: APX) share price in 2021.

The artificial intelligence (AI) data services company’s shares were among the worst performers on the ASX 200 during the 12 months.

Over the period, the Appen share price lost a massive 55% of its value. This means its shares are now trading approximately 73% below the record high they reached in 2020.

Why did the Appen share price crash in 2021?

Investors were selling down Appen’s shares in 2021 amid concerns over its performance and outlook.

In respect to the former, Appen’s half year results in August revealed a 2% decline in revenue to US$196.6 million and a 55.1% reduction in net profit after tax to US$6.7 million.

Given the lofty multiples that the company’s shares traded on, this didn’t go down well with investors. They were were quick to hit the sell button despite management promising a stronger second half.

What about the future?

Also weighing heavily on the Appen share price was a broker note out of Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG). This note sparked concerns over the company’s outlook.

In November, the broker downgraded Appen’s shares to an underperform rating and cut the price target on them to $9.50. This implies potential downside of 14% for its shares from current levels.

Macquarie revealed that it has been speaking to industry participants and notes that there is an emerging trend which has seen some big tech companies look to bypass Appen and directly crowdsource for data annotation services.

It believes this is being driven by tighter privacy and data retention standards, which has resulted in companies revising their strategies and developing their own crowd-sourcing solutions. Macquarie fears this could reduce demand for Appen’s services and downgraded its sales and earnings estimates to reflect this.

All eyes will be on the company’s full year results in February. A big improvement in its performance and proof that its outlook is not bleak could bring the Appen share price back to life.

The post Why the Appen (ASX:APX) share price crashed 55% lower in 2021 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. owns and has recommended Appen Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia owns and has recommended Appen Ltd. The Motley Fool Australia has recommended Macquarie Group Limited. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Is the Webjet Limited (ASX: WEB) share price a big opportunity considering it’s targeting a 14% global market share?

The ASX travel share already has a good presence in Australia. But the company has its sights on the global market with its business to business division called WebBeds.

Big plans for WebBeds

COVID-19 has been a difficult period for the global travel industry. However, Webjet’s management believe that the world has changed and its opportunity has increased.

Competition has reportedly decreased as financial pressures impact the industry.

WebBeds is taking advantage of opportunities to deliver significant revenue growth across a number of areas.

It has expanded its domestic offering in all regions. WebBeds has increased its penetration into the large North American business to business market. The company has increased and optimised its API (application programming interface) connections for key business to consumer (B2C) clients. Webjet says its financial strength makes it a trusted partner for hotel suppliers. Finally, it has retained its global footprint, hotel supply relationships and global customer network, so it’s ready for the global travel market to reopen.

In FY19 the B2B total transaction value (TTV) was worth a total of $70 billion. Webjet reportedly had a 4% share of this.

It’s now targeting a 14% global market share and the global TTV opportunity is now supposedly worth more than $70 billion. WebBeds is targeting $10 billion of TTV. This could be quite beneficial for the Webjet share price if it achieves that goal.

How does this translate to profitability?

In FY19, Webjet’s overall reported financial numbers reported were: $3.8 billion of TTV, $124.6 million of earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) and $62.3 million of net profit after tax (NPAT).

WebBeds is now hoping to be 20% more cost efficient when it’s at scale. The aim is for this to translate to revenue being 8% of TTV, expenses being 3% of TTV and EBITDA being 5% of TTV. In other words, the EBITDA margin could be 62.5% of revenue.

There are a few things that the company is working on to improve things. It’s streamlining its technology, enhancing Rezchain (blockchain) efficiencies, leveraging data analytics and simplifying processes across the business.

Is the Webjet share price a buy?

Webjet said that its WebBeds division has/had been profitable since July, driven by domestic sales in North America and Europe. November TTV was 63% of pre-COVID levels, yet many larger markets were yet to open.

The company is looking to win new clients, win existing clients booking to new destinations and win new direct contracts for the domestic market.

Before Omicron took hold globally, Webjet said that based on its current trajectory and outperformance of the market with its WebBeds and Webjet online travel agency business, it believed it would be back to pre-COVID booking volumes by the second half of FY23 (being October 2022 to March 2023).

There are a few brokers that rate Webjet as a buy, including UBS, Ord Minnett and Morgans. Each of them have price targets that are at least 20% higher than where Webjet is today. However, the next broker notes released will probably include the impacts of Omicron on travel in the shorter-term.

Ord Minnett’s numbers put the Webjet share price at 23x FY23’s estimated earnings.

The post Is the Webjet (ASX:WEB) share price an opportunity with a 14% global market share goal? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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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 recommended Webjet Ltd. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Bruce Jackson.

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Last year was a massive one for Fortescue Metals Group Limited‘s (ASX: FMG) Andrew ‘Twiggy’ Forrest, who made major investments in some notable ASX shares.

Aside from founding and chairing Fortescue Metals, its green energy leg Fortescue Future Industries (FFI), and philanthropic organisation Minderoo Foundation, the billionaire continued to invest through private vehicle Tattarang.

That’s where Twiggy works on his most exciting and, perhaps, boggling investments. Let’s look at what ASX shares the second richest person in Australia spends their money on.

Here are the ASX shares Twiggy bought up in 2021

Twiggy turned to the ASX to find strong investments in 2021, looking beyond resource companies to do so.

The investment vehicle bought a 7.3% stake in the cannabis-focused drug development company Emyria Ltd (ASX: EMD) for $5 million.

Tattarang believes a lack of clinical data is slowing the commercialisation of cannabis. Twiggy presumably thinks Emyria’s patient-centric and data-driven approach is helping to address the gap.

Twiggy also recently took a multi-million dollar bite out of Bega Cheese Ltd (ASX: BGA). He walked away with a 6.61% slice in the company.

Additionally, he upped his stake in formerly ASX-listed Huon Aquaculture Group in an unsuccessful attempt to block a takeover bid.

Finally, one of Twiggy’s major investment themes of 2021 was nickel mining.

His Wyloo Metals business signed an option and joint venture agreement that could see it purchasing 80% of a Canadian nickel project for $27.18 million (C$25 million).

Additionally, in late 2020, Twiggy’s Wyloo Metals snapped up an approximate 22.65% holding in Canadian-listed Noront Resources Ltd.

The billionaire recently won a bidding battle against S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) iron ore giant BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) for the remaining outstanding shares in the Canadian company. Though, Twiggy’s takeover hasn’t been finalised.

Tattarang also committed to a proposed ‘Future Metals Hub’ last year. The hub could see a new battery material supply chain born in Ontario.

The post Would you like cheese with that? A look at some of Twiggy’s highest profile ASX investments of 2021 appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

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Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper 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 Bruce Jackson.

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