For the reporting season just finished there were 24 listed investment companies covered by Independent Investment Research that reported full year results. Out of this 24, there were 14 LICs that experienced earnings declines.
This reflected lower dividend income, particularly for those LICs that have capital account status, and also lower portfolio capital appreciation for those LICs that report changes in portfolio value as part of their earnings. Despite these earnings pressures, there were few reductions in dividends paid by LICs for the FY2017 period. This reflects the fact that most LICs have a level of profit reserves that enables them to smooth dividends by holding back when profits are strong. There were four LICs that reduced dividends, seven held flat and 12 increased.
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