How did ASX-200 finance stocks perform in 2022?

Highlights:

• ASX 200 has marked a loss of 7.47% on a year-to-date basis.
• ASX 200 financials fell by 4.81% since the beginning of 2022 till now.

Looking back at the 2022, the Australian stock market can be seen as a roller coaster ride for investors. Today (28 December 2022), S&P/ASX 200 was 0.89% down at 7,023.20 points at 11:12 AM AEDT, and on a year-to-date basis, it has lost 7.47%. While the ASX Australian bond (ASX:BOND) was 1.32% lower at AU$23.26 and lost 12.72% on a year-to-date basis.

 Alexis Gray, senior economist, Vanguard Investment Strategy Group, said in the outlook for 2023 that,

Talking about the Australian financial stocks, the index, S&P/ASX 200 financials (INDEXASX:XFJ) gave up 4.81% on a year-to-date basis and 3.90% in a year. Worth mentioning here is that the index has gained 7.44% in the last six months and lost 3.85% in one month.

At 11:14 AM AEDT, XFJ was 0.50% down at 6,346.10 points.

In line with this, let’s have a look at the performance of ASX 200 financial stocks that have registered a gain of approximately 10% on a year-to-date basis and managed to outperform the benchmark index. The stocks discussed in this piece are Westpac Banking Corporation, QBE Insurance Group Limited, AMP Limited, and Challenger Limited.

Westpac Banking Corporation (ASX:WBC)

According to the official website of Westpac, it is Australia’s first bank and one of the largest banks in New Zealand. Also, Westpac is amongst the four major banking groups in Australia. Established in 1817, the company offers different types of wealth management and banking services to institutions, businesses and consumers through a portfolio of financial services businesses and brands.

Westpac shares were spotted trading 0.68% lower at AU$23.33 per share at 10:56 AM AEDT. With this, in the last five trading sessions, the shares have lost 0.51%. On a year-to-date basis, the share price has increased by 7.71% and by 8.71% in one year. Six months’ gain is 17%.

During the year, the company updated its climate change policy, released 2030 targets and joined the net-zero banking alliance. As per the annual general meeting 2022, the organisation is committed to exiting from lending to thermal coal mining by 2030.

In the financial year 2022, the company reported a 4% surge in net profit, a 6% growth in dividend per share and a 3% increase in core earnings.

Cash earnings dropped by 1%, revenue by 2%, expenses by 7%, cash earnings excluding notable items by 6% and return on equity by 46 basis points.

QBE Insurance Group Limited (ASX:QBE)

Image source: © Pvl | Megapixl.com

Established in 1886, QBE marked its beginning in Townsville, Australia and currently has a local presence across 27 countries. International insurer and reinsurer QBE have headquarters in Sydney and offers specialty, personal and commercial products and risk management solutions to help its customers manage risks, embrace changes to their advantage and build strength.

QBE Insurance shares were spotted trading 0.037% lower at AU$13.34 per share at 10:57 AM AEDT. With this, in the last five trading sessions, the shares have gained 2.26%. On a year-to-date basis, the share price has increased by 11.87% and by 15.65% in one year. Six months gain is 8.86%.

In November 2022, the company shared a performance update in which it revealed its financial metrics through the third quarter of 2022. Gross written premium during the quarter grew by 6% over the previous year, and the group-wide renewal rate grew by an average of 8.4%. In the year to September, gross written premiums surged by 12%.

In FY23, the company expects that the supportive premium rate environment will continue. For FY2022, QBE said that it is expected to be affected by catastrophe costs.

AMP Limited (ASX:AMP)

Beginning in 1849, AMP is a banking and retail wealth management business that operates across New Zealand and Australia and offers services to circa 1.5 million customers (according to the official website). The company provides banking and investment, retirement income, financial advice and superannuation products to its customer base.

AMP shares were spotted trading 0.38% higher at AU$1.32 per share. With this, in the last five trading sessions, the shares have lost 1.85%. On a year-to-date basis, the share price has increased by 32.50% and by 33.84% in one year. Six months’ gain is 35.20%.

The last performance update was provided by AMP on 21 October 2022. During the third quarter of 2022, the total loan book increased to AU$23.3 billion from AU$0.6 billion. Net cash inflow grew to AU$363 million from AU$205 million in 3Q21. Net cash outflow improved during the quarter with positive net cash inflows from New Zealand Wealth Management.

Challenger Limited (ASX:CGF)

Investment management organisation, Challenger is managing assets worth AU$99 billion as of 30 June 2022. The company operates three core investment businesses, an APRA regulated authorised deposit-taking institution, an APRA regulated life division and a fiduciary Funds Management division. According to the official website, it is the largest provider of annuities in Australia.

Challenger shares were spotted trading 0.26% higher at AU$7.62 per share. With this, in the last five trading sessions, the shares are virtually unchanged. On a year-to-date basis, the share price has increased by 11.40% and by 12.06% in one year. Six months’ gain is 9.17%.

In FY22, the company reported 19% growth in normalised NPBT, 14% in net income, 19% in EBIT, 40% in life sales, and 70 basis points in group ROE. Statutory NPAT dropped by 57% and group AUM by 10%.