Listed investment company AMCIL Limited (ASX: AMH) this morning released its half-yearly review for the last six months of 2018 alongside the declaration of a 2¢ per share fully franked interim dividend and a fully franked special dividend of 1.5¢ per share. AMCIL shares are trading 2% higher at $0.89 today.
The company cited the uncertainty regarding the future refundability of franking credits as a motivator for paying the special dividend.
AMCIL invests in 30 to 40 Australian equities companies of mixed size, employing a buy and hold strategy with a medium to longer term view.
AMCIL's portfolio underperformed the market over the period, posting a -10.2% return compared to the ASX200's -6.8%. This was nothing too far out of the ordinary after a dismal 2018 for Australian fund managers.
However, it should be noted that AMCIL's performance looks far better over a longer time horizon. Over a ten-year period, AMCIL has posted a return of 11.8% compared to a benchmark of 10.6%. This return figure is net of costs and tax paid.
Profit for the half-year was $3.66 million, up 42.7% on the previous corresponding period. This was driven by a gain on the options portfolio of $0.9 million and exposure to the BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) and Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO) buybacks.
Portfolio changes
Over the period, AMCIL picked up new positions in the following companies:
- Sydney Airport Holding Pty Ltd (ASX: SYD)
- Ramsay Health Care Limited (ASX: RHC)
- Starpharma Holdings Limited (ASX: SPL)
Meanwhile, AMCIL disposed of positions in:
- Nufarm Limited (ASX: NUF)
- Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corp Ltd (ASX: FPH)
- DuluxGroup Limited (ASX: DLX)
- ALS Ltd (ASX: ALQ)
- InvoCare Limited (ASX: IVC)
