2022 was a wild ride for ASX investors. The year was stamped by concerns over rising inflation and interest rates, sending the S&P/ASX All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XJO) down 7.2% to 7,222 points.
The broader market finished in the red. But as always, there were some standout ASX All Ords shares that soared well above the rest.
As you'll soon discover, an overwhelming majority of the five best-performing ASX All Ords shares of 2022 have one distinct characteristic in common. In terms of share price gains, four of the five top-ranked companies are ASX coal shares.
Let's take a look.
Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC)
Taking out the coveted title of the best-performing ASX All Ords share in 2022 was none other than Whitehaven Coal.
The Whitehaven Coal share price served up a stunning 261% gain, finishing the year at $9.42. Unsurprisingly, this staggering rise was enough to top the ASX 200 tables as well.
Like many other ASX coal shares, Whitehaven benefitted from a renaissance in coal prices in 2022, triggered by the war in Ukraine.
As a high-quality thermal coal producer, Whitehaven has been a major beneficiary of record-high coal prices. In FY22, the company delivered record revenue of $4.9 billion, underpinned by an achieved average coal price of $325/tonne. This was a dramatic improvement from $1.6 billion of revenue and an achieved average coal price of $95/tonne in FY21.
The improvement was even more dramatic on Whitehaven's bottom line. After posting a net loss of $544 million in FY21, the company generated a colossal net profit after tax (NPAT) of $2 billion. Naturally, New Hope also rewarded shareholders with a monster hike in dividends.
Stanmore Resources Ltd (ASX: SMR)
The next cab off the rank is Stanmore Resources, one of Australia's largest suppliers of metallurgical coal to global markets.
The Stanmore share price shot up a whopping 211% in 2022, closing out the year at $2.95. On the back of this meteoric rise, the company boasts a market capitalisation of roughly $2.7 billion.
Stanmore's most notable development in 2022 was the US$1.2 billion acquisition of BHP Group Ltd's (ASX: BHP) 80% interest in the BHP Mitsui Coal (BMC) joint venture.
BMC owns the South Walker Creek and Poitrel mines, with combined metallurgical coal production of around 10 million tonnes per annum and total marketable reserves in excess of 135 million tonnes.
Stanmore finalised this acquisition in May, funding the US$1.2 billion upfront consideration through a combination of debt and equity.
In October, Stanmore acquired the remaining 20% stake from Mitsui for US$380 million.
New Hope Corporation Limited (ASX: NHC)
New Hope secured an all-coal podium, rounding out the top three with a mammoth 185% gain. The New Hope share price ended the year at $6.36, giving the ASX All Ords share a market cap of around $5.6 billion.
Sky-high coal prices underpinned New Hope's eye-catching set of FY22 results. Despite producing 18% less saleable coal, the company delivered a 143% upswing in revenue, which hit $2.6 billion, and a more than 12-fold increase in profit, which landed at $983 million.
New Hope's average realised price surged 178% to $281.84/tonne in FY22. This helped the ASX All Ords share delight shareholders with bumper fully-franked dividends.
Silex Systems Ltd (ASX: SLX)
Next up is Silex, the only non-coal ASX All Ords share to make it into the top five.
For those unfamiliar, Silex is a high-tech company focused on commercialising its laser technology to enrich uranium and silicon.
The Silex share price lit up in 2022, racing 141% higher to finish the year at $3.20. The company is a minnow compared to its top-performing ASX All Ords counterparts, commanding a market cap of around $650 million.
Silex has also been spurred on by the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which has led to a resurgence in nuclear energy.
Silex believes its technology could become a major contributor to nuclear fuel production for the world's current and future nuclear reactor fleet, through the production of three different grades of uranium.
The company also achieved several key milestones for its Zero-Spin Silicon (ZS-Si) project during the year. This was capped off in December with news of the successful achievement of target enrichment objectives during stage three testing.
Yancoal Australia Ltd (ASX: YAL)
Last but not least, the Yancoal share price also went gangbusters in 2022, soaring 133% to $6.06. This values the company at around $8 billion.
Yancoal is a leading producer of thermal and metallurgical coal. It's dual-listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange and is majority-owned by Chinese coal mining company Yankuang Energy, which holds a 62% stake.
Unsurprisingly, Yancoal has been another major beneficiary from sky-high coal prices. In the six months to 30 June 2022, the ASX All Ords share generated $4.8 billion of revenue, not far off the $5.4 billion achieved in FY21 which was a record year. This monumental growth was driven by a 234% increase in Yancoal's average realised coal price to $314/tonne.
