The best JSE Top 40 shares as of April 2022

The best JSE TOP 40 listed shares in 2022

In the below article we identify the top performing companies listed on the JSE TOP 40 Index for the year thus far.

JSE Top 40 Index price performance

The commencement of war between Russia and the Ukraine, persistent inflation globally and a hawkish outlook towards global interest rates has provided plenty of catalysts for volatility in 2022. However, through that volatility in the first quarter, we have seen the JSE Top 40 Index managing to add more than 12% year to date (as of the 4th of April 2022).

Best JSE Top 40 share price performances in 2022 so far

Commodity prices supporting gains

In what is perhaps a short bout of irony as the world tries to move away from fossil fuels such as coal and oil, Exxaro and Sasol have topped the gainers list, adding 50.5% and 39.64% respectively in 2022. Gains in these producers of resources, along with Sibanye Stillwater and Anglo American Plc (9th and 10th on the list) have found this years share price gains enhanced by sentiment pertaining to the sharp rise in commodity prices. This is as a result of the ongoing war.

While Sasol does in fact hedge out its oil pricing risk (and may not really be benefitting from the recent rise), results have highlighted a business which over the last few years invoked a sharp turnaround, reducing liabilities and increasing operational efficiences and returning to profitability.

The average basket price for gold and platinum group metals (PGMs), while off the shock highs of the year remain elevated in 2022 relative to 2021. These precious metal prices are expected to be supportive of future earnings from the likes of Sibanye, Gold Fields and Anglo American Plc.

While Anglos does not really have gold exposure, it would have benefitted from the rise in pgm's primarily through its Amplats subsidiary. A sharp recent rise in iron ore is also beneficial to, through its subsidiary Kumba Iron Ore. Perhaps Anglo’s outperformance of these aforementioned subsidiaries can be attributed to supportive copper prices as well as diamonds (of which Russia, pre sanctions, was a major exporter thereof).

Financials rebound sharply

Five of the ten top performing blue chip counters in 2022 have been financial counters, namely: Nedbank (+33.25%), Standard Bank (+30.25%), Firstrand (+26.32%), Discovery (+25.85%) and ABSA Group (+23.74%).

Banking counters in particular have seen renewed vigor as they bounce back from a hard lockdown and look to improving margins as the path of domestic interest rates start to rise.