The S&P/ASX 50 index (ASX:XPL) was spotted trading 1.652% lower at 6889.9 as of 2:45 PM AEST today (19 May). Despite today’s fall, XPL has gained over 2% on over the past 12 months. However, on a year-to-date basis, XPL index has fallen over 4%.
This article primarily focuses on ASX 50 materials and energy sector companies such as Rio, Woodside and Santos and their performance on the ASX today.
Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO)
The shares of the ASX-listed mining company Rio Tinto Limited (ASX:RIO) were spotted trading 1.809% lower at AU$106.89 per share at 1:30 PM AEST on the ASX today (19 May). Approximately 527,000 shares of Rio have changed hands till now on the ASX.
Rio announced its revised funding plan with Turquoise Hill Resources today. The revised funding plan will allow Rio to offer liquidity up to AU$400 million in short-term early advances. On the other hand, the special committee of Turquoise has evaluated Rio’s CA$34 per share all-cash proposal to acquire 49% of the issued outstanding shares of Turquoise, which are not currently owned by Rio.
The share price of Rio has fallen over 13% on the ASX over the past 12 months. On the other hand, Rio’s share price have gained over 7% year-to-date.
Meanwhile, the S&P/ASX 200 Materials sector (ASX:XMJ) was spotted trading 1.583% lower at 16930.5.
Read more: Shanghai to ease COVID-19 lockdown: How it may impact ASX iron ore stocks
Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX:WPL)
Image source: © Viewimage | Megapixl.com
The shares of ASX-listed petroleum producer Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX:WPL) were spotted trading 2.763% lower at AU$29.91 per share at the time of drafting this article. Approximately 2.5 million shares of Woodside have been traded till now.
On 17 May 2022, Woodside shared that it has secured approval from the National Offshore Petroleum Titles Administration for its proposed merger with BHP Group’s (ASX:BHP) petroleum business. However, Woodside still requires approval from its shareholders to execute this merger. Shareholders’ approval will be sought today (19 May) at Woodside’s Annual General Meeting 2022. The company anticipates completing the merger on 1 June 2022 after securing all the necessary approvals.
The share price of Woodside has gained over 31% on the ASX in the past 12 months.
Meanwhile, the S&P/ASX 200 Energy sector (ASX:XEJ) was spotted trading 1.734% lower at 10032.7 today.
Santos Limited (ASX:STO)
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The shares of Santos Limited (ASX:STO) were spotted trading 0.665% lower at AU$8.205 per share at 2:09 PM AEST on the ASX today (19 May). Approximately 7.6 million shares of Santos were traded till now during today’s trading session on the ASX today.
On 17 May 2022, Santos, in a joint venture with State Gas Limited (ASX:GAS), appointed preferred tenderer of two new areas under the Queensland Government’s latest Petroleum Land Release Program.
Currently, the company is focused on its on-market share buyback plan. Santos has bought a total of 13,395,392 shares of its own till now, with approximately 1,473,925 shares bought alone on the previous day.
Share buyback plan reflects a company’s good financial health. As a result, it justifies Santos’ heavy trading volume on the ASX today. Furthermore, Santos also paid a 70% franked interim dividend of AU$0.118 per share based on its earnings to its eligible shareholders in March 2022.
Read More: RIO, WPL, STO: Why these ASX blue-chip stocks are in news today?