Australian (ASX) Stock Market Forum

AUI - Australian United Investment Company

Reported yesterday. Sticks to its history of being consistent. MER still 0.1%

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Nobody likes AUI, they don't make any efforts to promote themselves and the float is largely held by their largest shareholder.

Still trading at a decent discount to NTA, something like 10% discount.

For those interested mainly in dividend income and not caring about a daily liquidity requirement, interesting opportunity continues here to buy 100c of dividend stream for 90c.
 
Nobody likes AUI, they don't make any efforts to promote themselves and the float is largely held by their largest shareholder.

Still trading at a decent discount to NTA, something like 10% discount.

For those interested mainly in dividend income and not caring about a daily liquidity requirement, interesting opportunity continues here to buy 100c of dividend stream for 90c.
Am happy it's not so popular otherwise it might not trade at a discount & yes, a steady income stream is a requirement for me. As for liquidity, I guess it depends how many one is trying to purchase but I've never had a problem getting my order filled.
 
Nobody likes AUI

Its shareholders do but I get what you mean.

An interesting LIC in a way. Concentrated with the top 25 holdings accounting for 90% of the total assets and one of the few I know of, DUI being the other, which are prepared to use borrowings. Total investments is $1.4m and, surprisingly, DUI isn't far short of that at $1.3m but does hold international ETF/managed funds.

Both are very consistent payers.

I don't hold either.
 
It's a preference thing, with larger cap LICs. They all tend to run close to the chosen index. I like the way the AFI stable and ARG are more on the front foot wrt an investor profile. And often trading above the NTA; is that correlated?

Investor awareness can operate as a positive sleep at night factor, though some might argue recency and confirmation biases can intrude.
 
As for liquidity, I guess it depends how many one is trying to purchase but I've never had a problem getting my order filled.

Entry liquidity is not very interesting, just leave ones bid in the book and it'll fill sooner or later, one can wait.

What I was referring to was exit liquidity, the one which matters and the one which AUI has very little of. In fact the presence (or lack) of any bids of size in the book seems to be a decent indicator for the index. One can't easily sell AUI when the index isn't travelling well, people who need exit liquidity in their investments probably don't want to allocate much to AUI.
 
Entry liquidity is not very interesting, just leave ones bid in the book and it'll fill sooner or later, one can wait.

What I was referring to was exit liquidity, the one which matters and the one which AUI has very little of. In fact the presence (or lack) of any bids of size in the book seems to be a decent indicator for the index. One can't easily sell AUI when the index isn't travelling well, people who need exit liquidity in their investments probably don't want to allocate much to AUI.
Okay, I get what you say, but for me it's a long term buy & hold so not an issue.
 
OUCH !

saw this sliding and lobbed an order in ... and it got filled 7 cents below my bid price ( instantly )

that shakes my confidence ( a bit )
 
Results for announcement to the market
The reporting period is the half year ended 31 December 2023 with the prior corresponding period being the half year ended 31 December 2022.
The report is based on audit reviewed financial statements.
A copy of the auditor’s review report can be found on page 15.
• Revenue from ordinary activities was $28.4 million, a fall of 16.2% from the prior corresponding period.
• Profit after tax was $24.3 million, down 19.1% from the prior corresponding period.
• Profit after tax for the period of $24.3 million excludes net realised gains and losses which are transferred directly to the Realisation Reserve under the accounting standards.
• Profit after tax includes special dividends of $241,000 after tax (previous corresponding period $810,000).

Excluding these items revenue fell 14.9%1 and profit after tax fell 17.7%1 .
• Earnings per share based on profit after tax were 19.2 cents, a decrease of 19.7% from the prior corresponding period.
Excluding special dividends received, earnings per share fell 18.5% to 19.0 cents1 .
• The Pre-tax Net Tangible Asset (“Pre-tax NTA”) backing of the Company’s shares at 31 December 2023 was $11.32 per share (30 June 2023 $10.63).
The Pre-tax NTA backing calculation is before any future tax benefit of net realised losses, before estimated tax on net unrealised gains and losses, and before provision for the Company’s interim dividend.
• The interim dividend for the half year is 17.0 cents per share (previous corresponding period 17.0 cents) fully franked payable on 15 March 2024.
The record date for determining entitlement to the dividend is 23 February 2024.
• The interim dividend will not include any Listed Investment Company capital gain.
• The Company operates a Dividend Reinvestment Plan (“DRP”) under which shareholders may elect to have all or part of their dividend payment reinvested in new ordinary shares.
Pricing of the new DRP shares will be at the volume weighted average selling price of shares traded on the Australian Securities Exchange in the five trading days commencing from the day the shares start trading on an ex dividend basis, without any discount.
The last day for the receipt of an election notice for participation in the plan is 26 February 2024. 1 Additional non-IFRS information. Australian United Investment Company Limited Australian United Investment Company Limited Level 20, 101 Collins Street MELBOURNE VIC 3000 ABN 37 004 268 679 +61 3 9654 0499 ● aui.com.au 14 February 2024 ASX Announcement Financial Results and Dividend Announcement for the half year ended 31 December 2023

The Directors make the following report concerning the Company’s performance and interim dividend.
Market review and performance Equity markets demonstrated resilience during the half year, despite intermittent market fluctuations due to economic uncertainty, geopolitical tensions, and inflation concerns.
The S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index rose 7.6% through the period, with the Financials and Real Estate sectors outperforming.
The accumulation performance of the Company’s Pre-tax Net Tangible Asset (NTA) backing (before provision for tax on unrealised gains) was an increase of 8.5%.
This performance is calculated after all expenses, current taxes paid or payable, and the impact of the Company’s gearing.
Such items are not included in the S&P/ASX indices.
Financial results Statutory profit after tax for the half year ended 31 December 2023 was $24.3 million (previous corresponding period: $30.1 million).
Statutory profit after tax includes special dividends of $241,000 (previous corresponding period: $810,000).
Excluding these items revenue fell 14.9% and statutory profit after tax decreased 17.7%1.
Revenues received during the period were lower than the prior corresponding period primarily due to lower dividends from BHP, Rio Tinto and Woodside, as a result of softer commodity prices and increased costs in those results periods.
More information on the Company’s activities, performance and financial results can be found in the Operating and Financial Review on page 1 of the Interim Financial Report. 1 Additional non-IFRS information.

Dividends and franking The Directors have declared an interim dividend of 17.0 cents per share fully franked at 30% to shareholders registered on 23 February 2024, to be paid on 15 March 2024.
The comparable 2023 interim dividend was 17.0 cents per share fully franked at 30%.
The 2024 interim dividend represents a payout ratio of 89% of earnings per share (excluding special income), compared to 71% in the prior corresponding period. While the interim dividend is covered by earnings in the current period, the Company also has sufficient accumulated retained earnings to draw on and has adequate accumulated franking credits to fully frank the final dividend should this be required in the future. The Company has a long history of paying reliable fully franked dividends and has maintained or increased its dividends paid per share every year since 1994.
LIC capital gains The interim dividend will not include any Listed Investment Company capital gain component. Dividend Reinvestment Plan
The Company operates a Dividend Reinvestment Plan (“DRP”) under which shareholders may elect to have all or part of their dividend payment reinvested in new ordinary shares.


i hold AUL ( bought very recently )

i think their outlook is wrong ( way too positive ) but let's see how reactive they are if they need to stray from the current plan
The last day for the receipt of an election notice for participation in the plan is 26 February 2024. Outlook We are cautious on the short-term outlook for the share market mainly for the reason that it is trading near its all-time high.
There are numerous areas of geopolitical conflict or tension in the world which could lead to a more adverse general environment. We expect a slower growing Australian economy rather than a recession.
We expect interest rates to have peaked but to remain higher for longer than the market is predicting.
We anticipate receiving lower dividend income from our shareholdings in BHP, Rio Tinto, and Woodside. .

In summary, we envisage a resilient economy withstanding difficult conditions but growing slowly and we have concerns that the share market does not fully reflect the various uncertainties in the world economy.

Review of activities during the period There has been no significant change in the nature of the Company’s activities during the period. Portfolio turnover for the period to 31 December 2023 was 0.9%.

The largest acquisitions and disposals during the period were:

Acquisitions
ResMed Inc (1) $22.3M
Origin Energy Limited (1) $8.0M
Brickworks Limited (2) $5.0M
Pilbara Minerals Ltd (2) $3.1M
IGO Ltd (2) $2.8M
(1) Additions to existing positions. (2) New position.

Disposals
Alumina Limited (3) $8.0M
Ramsay Health Care Ltd (4) $5.2M


(3) Fully disposed of holding. (4) Partially disposed of holding.


At 31 December 2023, the Company had total borrowing facilities available of $195 million drawn to $114 million (30 June 2023: $195 million, drawn to $86 million).

meanwhile i have been carefully accumulating IGO
 
I present the Annual Report of Australian United Investment Company Limited for the year ended 30 June 2024.Investment strategy

The Company’s investment objectives are:
1. To create and maintain a diversified portfolio of quality Australian companies, primarily through shares listed on the ASX , with a medium to long term view of providing income and capital appreciation;
2. To manage the portfolio with a view to monitoring and reducing risks and identifying market opportunities; and
3. To provide dividend income to shareholders which is sustainable over the long-term, while maintaining full franking when possible.

In deciding whether to add a stock to the watch list or to buy it, or to increase or decrease its size in the portfolio, the following criteria are considered:
1. Industry outlook;
2. Position of the company in its industry;
3. Earnings per share (EPS) growth potential;
4. Yield and franking;
5. Management strength and alignment with shareholder returns;
6. Balance Sheet strength; and
7. Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) factors.The Company’s Responsible Investing policy can be found on its website.

About the portfolio

The Australian equities portfolio is mainly in leading companies.
At 30 June 2024, 66.6% of the Australian equities portfolio was invested in the ASX 20,
13.0% in the ASX 21 to 50,
11.8% in the ASX 51 to 100
and 8.6%outside the ASX 100.

The Company is a long-term investor, with the average age of holdings across the portfolio being 15 years. 61% of the portfolio has been held for longer than 10 years.

i hold AUI
 
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