The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) was well and truly out of form in March.
During the period, the benchmark index lost a disappointing 4% of its value to finish at 7,843.4 points.
Fortunately, not all ASX 200 shares fell with the market and some even managed to record strong gains.
Here are the best performers on the index in March:
Spartan Resources Ltd (ASX: SPR)
The Spartan Resources share price was the best performer on the ASX 200 in March with a gain of 45%. This was driven by the gold price hitting a record high and news that it plans to merge with Ramelius Resources Ltd (ASX: RMS). Ramelius' managing director, Mark Zeptner, said: "Ramelius is delighted to be combining with Spartan, which will see Ramelius' Mt Magnet Production Hub supercharged by the integration of Spartan's high-grade Dalgaranga Mineral Resource. The combination will see Mt Magnet deliver higher ounces, at higher grade, with higher margins. With the Spartan Effect, Ramelius has a vision for the Combined Group to be a +500koz/pa producer in FY30."
West African Resources Ltd (ASX: WAF)
The West African Resources share price wasn't far behind with a gain of 33% last month. The main catalyst for this was the release of the gold miner's full year results on 6 March. West African Resources revealed revenue of $730 million and a profit after tax of $246 million for the year. The latter was up 49% year on year. Its CEO, Richard Hyde, said: "WAF's Sanbrado production centre delivered another strong result in 2024 producing 206,622 ounces of gold at US$1,240 per ounce AISC, generating A$252 million cashflow from operations and A$246 million NPAT. Kiaka's construction remains on schedule and on-budget for first gold in Q3 2025."
Regis Resources Ltd (ASX: RRL)
The Regis Resources share price was on form and raced 23% higher during the month. This was driven by the gold price charging to record high after record high in March due to trade war concerns and rate cuts. This also led to a host of other ASX 200 gold shares recording double digit returns during the month, including Newmont Corporation (ASX: NEM) and Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN).
Healius Ltd (ASX: HLS)
The Healius share price had a strong month and charged 8.5% higher. This was driven by the release of an investor day update from the pathology services provider. While Healius revealed that trading has been positive early in 2025, the big news getting investors excited was that its board is planning to return $300 million to shareholders through a special dividend. If the sale of its Lumus business completes successfully, the company expects to pay a fully franked special dividend of 41.3 cents per share. This represents a massive dividend yield of almost 30%.
