The Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO) share price was on form in the last financial year.
During the 12 months, the mining giant's shares rose almost 12%.
How does this compare to the ASX 200 index?
Pleasingly, the Rio Tinto share price outperformed the ASX 200 index in FY 2023 with its 12% gain.
As a comparison, the benchmark index rose 9.7% over the same period.
It is also worth highlighting that Rio Tinto paid a couple of big dividends to its lucky shareholders during the period.
It paid $3.84 per share in September and then $3.27 per share in April. This is a total of $7.11 per share, which represents a fully franked 6.2% dividend yield.
Overall, this boosts its total return for the 12 months to a sizeable ~18%. No complaints from shareholders, I bet!
What drove the strong performance?
Investors were bidding the Rio Tinto share price higher partly in response to higher-than-expected iron ore prices.
After initially dropping as low as almost US$80s a tonne, the iron ore price bounced back strongly and spent the majority of the financial year comfortably above the US$100 a tonne mark.
This bodes well for the company's performance in FY 2024, especially with the company delivering record shipments during the first quarter.
In addition, the company made a major acquisition during the 12 months. It increased its stake in the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine in Mongolia to 66% after acquiring Turquoise Hill for US$3.1 billion.
Given how important copper is for the decarbonisation megatrend, this was seen as a smart move by management.
All in all, a great 12 months for the company and its shareholders. Both parties will no doubt be hoping for more of the same in the new financial year.
