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Australian Foundation Investment Company

Australian Foundation Investment Company (ASX:AFI) FY24 half-year results
Australian Foundation Investment Company (ASX:AFI) FY23 full year results
Our Banks are Better
AFIC FY 2021/22 Full Year Results Summary
The Impact of Inflation and Interest Rates on Investments
AFIC Profit Up, Outperforms ASX-200 in First Half
A Positive Year for the Banks
AFIC 2021 Full Year Result Briefing
Does Size Matter for Listed Investment Companies?
Succeeding Over the Long Term
The Advantages of a Traditional LIC
AFIC Answers Shareholder Questions
AFIC Beats Broader Market with 15.2 Percent Return for 2H20
A very challenging year: How AFIC saw 2020
Discount vs Premium: How AFIC looks at NTA

About this Fund

Fund Detail

PDS
FUND MANAGER AFIC
ASX Code AFI*
APIR
ASSET CLASS LISTED INVESTMENT COMPANY
INVESTMENT STYLE A diversified portfolio primarily of ASX-listed Australian equities.
INVESTMENT PROFILE Aims to provide shareholders with attractive investment returns through access to a growing stream of fully franked dividends and enhancement of capital invested over the medium to long term.
CURRENCY MANAGEMENT Unhedged
INCEPTION DATE
BENCHMARK S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index
FUND SIZE S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index
DISTRIBUTION FREQUENCY Half-yearly
NO. OF HOLDINGS 80-100
FEES 0.14% p.a.
STRUCTURE

Benefits

Benefits

Benefits of investing in AFI

  • Diversified portfolio primarily of ASX-listed Australian equities.
  • Tax-effective income via fully franked dividends.
  • Consistent after tax paid investment returns achieved over the long term.
  • Professional management and an experienced Board, investment and management team.
  • Low-cost investing.
  • Ease of investing, transparent ASX pricing, good liquidity in shares.
  • Shareholder meetings on a regular basis.

RISK LEVEL
INVESTOR SUITABILITY

Risks

Title
Detail

Key Features

About the Fund

Australian Foundation Investment Company Limited (AFIC) is Australia's largest listed investment company on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). It was established in 1928 and specialises in investing in Australian equities.

We invest in Australian companies that have unique high-quality assets, brands and/or business footprints that can withstand economic cycles. When selecting investments for our portfolio, we look for management and board strength, and sound financial metrics covering returns on investment, profit margins, cash flow and gearing.

We believe that these businesses generate superior returns over the long term.

Our experienced team manage the AFIC portfolio with a long-term lens - aiming to provide shareholders with attractive investment returns through access to a growing stream of fully franked dividends and growth in capital invested.

Investment Objectives

The Company aims to provide shareholders with attractive investment returns through access to a growing stream of fully franked dividends and growth in capital invested.

The Company's primary investment goals are:

  • to pay dividends which, over time, grow faster than the rate of inflation; and
  • to provide attractive total returns over the medium to long term.

Mandate

How we invest your money

The investment philosophy is built on taking a medium to long-term view on companies in a diversified portfolio with an emphasis on identifying quality companies that are likely to sustainably grow their earnings and dividends over this time frame.

Quality in this context is an outcome of our assessment of the board and management as well as some key financial metrics such as the level of gearing in the balance sheet, product margins and free cash flow. The structure of the industry and a company's competitive position in this industry is also an important indicator of quality. Linked to this assessment of quality is the ability of companies to grow earnings over time, which ultimately should produce good dividend growth.

Recognising value is also an important aspect of sound long-term investing. Short-term measures such as the price earnings ratio, price to book or price to sales may be of some value, but aren't necessarily strong predictors of future performance. Our assessment of value tries to capture the opportunity a business has to prosper and thrive over the medium to long term.

In building the investment portfolio in this way, we believe we can offer investors a well-diversified portfolio of high-quality companies that is intended to deliver total returns ahead of the Australian equity market and with less volatility over the long term.

The Company also uses options written against a small proportion of its investments and a small trading portfolio to generate additional income.

From time to time, some borrowings may be used where potential investment returns justify the use of debt. This is managed within very conservative limits, as determined by the Board.