The Australian United Investment Company (AUI) has reported an increase of almost 20 per cent (19.45 per cent) in its annual net profit after tax to $32.7 million for the 2010-11 financial year, up from $27.4 million the previous year.
AUI’s total assets were valued at $859,753,165 at June 30, 2011, up by over $85 million from $774,502,860 for the 2009-10 financial year, the company’s 2011 Annual Financial Report states.
The weighted average number of ordinary shares for the year was 104,247,623 compared to 99,193,947 for the previous year, an increase of 5 per cent. Operating earnings per share were 31.4 cents compared to 26.8 for the previous year.
Bank borrowings were $100 million at the end of the financial year, amounting to around 12 per cent of the investment portfolio at market values. Cash on hand, cash on deposit and short term receivables were $22 million, or 3 per cent of the investment portfolio at market value. The annual interest expense was covered 6.1 times by investment revenue, the report stated.
AUI reported $15,575,000 of new equity raised through a share purchase in October 2010 of 2,426,619 new shares at $6.42 per share.
The net asset backing per share before provision for estimated tax on unrealised gains and the final dividend was $7.24 at 30 June, 2011, compared to $6.68 at 30 June, 2010.
Operating expenses, excluding borrowing costs, were 0.12 per cent of the average market value of the portfolio compared to 0.15 per cent in 2010.
The final dividend for the year ending 30 June, 2011, was 14.5 cents per share, fully franked. Along with the interim dividend of 12 cents per share, the total dividend for the year was 26.5 cents per share, up 4 per cent on last year’s dividend total of 25.5 per share.
