Good morning, and welcome to the 2024 Annual General Meeting of Diversified United Investment Limited. I'm informed by our company secretary that in accordance with the company's constitution, a quorum is present, and I declare the meeting formally open. Our company secretary has confirmed that the notice of meeting has been sent to all shareholders and other persons entitled to receive it within the notice period. Today's meeting will be conducted as a hybrid meeting, with attendees joining both in person and online through our virtual meeting platform. I'd now like to introduce our directors and secretary. From my right, Mr. Tony Burgess, then Mr. Stephen Hiscock, Mr. Andrew Larke.
Morning.
Mr. Andrew Sisson.
Good morning.
Our company secretary, Mr. James Pollard, is in the front row there.
Good morning.
Mr. Luke Sullivan of KPMG, who is our auditor.
Good morning.
Luke. Our share registry provider, Link Market Services, will conduct the voting by way of poll, and Ms. Julie Stokes of Link will act as our Returning Officer. Votes will be counted after the end of the meeting, and results will be published on the ASX. Shareholders attending today's meeting in person can cast their vote using the voting cards provided upon your arrival. Online attendees can cast their vote using an electronic voting card. Click on the Get Voting Card button and follow the instructions on screen. Online votes can be finalized and submitted up until 10 minutes after the meeting ends. If you experience any difficulties using the virtual meeting platform, please check the Virtual Meeting Guide on your website, or contact the helpline shown on the screen. Online attendees can submit written questions during the meeting by clicking on the Ask a Question button.
To ensure questions reach us in time, I ask that you submit them now if you haven't already done so. Shareholders can also ask questions by telephone by following the instructions on the Virtual Meeting Guide. If you'd like to ask a question by phone but have not obtained a PIN, please contact Link on one eight zero zero nine nine zero three six three. Any general shareholder questions submitted and not answered during the meeting will be addressed after the formal business is completed. If we are not able to answer all questions today, or if there are specific questions that would be better addressed on an individual basis, we'll respond to them after the meeting. Mr. Secretary, are there any apologies?
Mr. Chairman, I confirm there are no apologies. I can also advise that I have received a validated list of proxies from Link, the results of which will be presented at each resolution.
Thank you, Mr. Secretary. The matters requiring consideration today are outlined in the notice of meeting. The notice will be taken as read. The first item of business is to receive and consider the statement and report of the directors, the report of the auditor, and the financial statements for the year ended thirtieth of June, 2024 , and to receive any questions from shareholders. I'll now deliver the annual address. DUI's investment objectives are: to maintain the company's diversified investment portfolio of primarily Australian companies and an investment in international markets, to invest on a medium to long-term view of providing income and capital appreciation, to appropriately manage risks and identify market opportunities as they arise, and to provide sustainable dividend income to our shareholders.
Our investment preference is towards quality companies, those with capable management, strong long-term prospects within their industry, and that have a proven dividend-paying record. This investment strategy has proven itself over time, with the portfolio outperforming the index over the long term. We will continue with this strategy, that is, to look through short-term market volatility and to remain invested in resilient, quality companies. Profit after income tax was AUD 36 million for the year to the thirtieth of June 2024, a decrease of 16% on the previous year. If special dividends received, capital gains distributed from managed funds, and fair value movements on unlisted investment, on unlisted investments are excluded, the result of AUD 34.8 million is a decrease of 15% on the previous year.
Revenues received during the year were lower, primarily due to lower dividends from BHP, Rio Tinto, and Woodside as a result of softer commodity prices. Excuse me. A fully franked final dividend of AUD 0.09 per share was paid in September, which, with the fully franked interim dividend of AUD 0.07 per share, brought the total dividend for the year to AUD 0.16 per share, fully franked, in line with last year... DUI has maintained or increased its dividend paid per share every year since it was listed in nineteen ninety-one. Operating expenses, excluding borrowing costs, represented 0.12% of the average market value of the portfolio, in line with last year.
If we include the management fees of the international exchange-traded funds and the managed funds in which the company is invested, the see-through total expense ratio was 0.16%, compared to 0.17% last year. Borrowing facilities were AUD 140 million at the end of the financial year, and they were drawn to AUD 77.5 million. The composition of the portfolio by sectors at the thirtieth September is as shown on the slides. The diversified portfolio comprises 27 Australian companies across multiple sectors, and the international-focused investments through six ETFs and one managed fund. A full list of the company's investments at the thirtieth of June, 2024, can be found at the end of the annual report.
Our largest acquisitions and disposals during the previous year are as shown on the slide. Since the end of the financial year, we have increased our holding in Woodside; sold our holdings in REA, REA Group, Sonic Health, and the Copper Gold Mining and Japan ETFs; and reduced our holdings in Commonwealth Bank and the Vanguard Europe ex-UK ETF. The performance of Investment DUI, based on the NTA per share, and separately based on the share price, assuming all dividends were reinvested, compared to the S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index over the one, three, five, and ten-year periods is as shown on the slide. Our portfolio, on an NTA accumulation basis, returned 11.1% for the year to the thirtieth of June, 2024 , underperforming the ASX 200 Accumulation Index by 1%.
The company's relative performance was assisted by an overweight allocation to Aristocrat, an underweight allocation to BHP, and exposure to international markets, which outperformed the ASX 200 Accumulation Index. Performance was held back by overweight holdings in Transurban, Perpetual, and Woodside. We actively monitor our investee companies and potential investment companies. During the year, I can report that the board had 24 meetings with companies in which we are invested, of which five were with companies which we had no holdings, but we were considering an investment in. Since the 30th of June, we've held an additional 15 meetings with investee companies. I now turn to the outlook for the year ahead.
As the old saying goes: "The share market is climbing a wall of worry." As we worry about the geopolitical scene, the troubled Chinese economy, and the stagnant European economies, we are naturally cautious. We see the Australian economy growing slowly, reflecting low productivity, lower commodity prices, and regulations inhibiting investment projects. We expect inflation to moderate and interest rates to move a little lower next financial year, maybe next calendar year. With the share market near its all-time high, we are cautious in respect to the short-term outlook, but remain confident that equities are a sound long-term investment. We are fully invested, and our portfolio will, over time, broadly reflect the movements of the general share market. We've reduced our borrowings over the last twelve months, which for some years had been around 10% of the market value of the portfolio and is now around 2%.
We expect, in the absence of significant unforeseen circumstances, and despite expecting some reduction in dividends received from leading resource companies, to maintain our dividend at the same rate of AUD 0.16 per share in the year ahead. That concludes the annual address, and I'll now invite shareholders attending in person who would like to ask us any general business questions to raise their hand, show your yellow or blue shareholder card, and we'll bring a microphone to you. Are there any questions? If not, I'll ask the secretary if there are any questions from people on the hybrid system.
Mr. Chairman, there are no written questions.
I'll ask the operator if anyone's phoned in with a question. Telephone operator? No.
No.
Okay. If not, I'll move to Resolution two. Resolution two is a non-binding resolution, and is that the remuneration report that forms part of the directors' report for the company for the financial year ended the thirtieth of June 2024 be adopted. I've already mentioned our costs are good, about 0.12%, and with the see-through about 0.16% of the portfolio. Proxies received before the meeting are as presented in the slides. Shareholders attending in person, if they'd like to ask a question, please do so. Any, Mr. Secretary, from those online?
There are no written questions, Mr. Chairman.
Any from the telephone system?
No.
Mr. Chairman, there are no phone questions.
Okay. You might turn your volume down a little. We're voting at the end of the meeting, or during the meeting you can vote. Resolution three is that Mr. Tony Burgess, a director retiring from office by rotation, in accordance with Clause sixty-five of the Constitution, being eligible, is re-elected as the director of the company. Proxies received before the meeting are as presented in the slides. Shareholders attending, would you like to ask any questions? No. Any from the hybrid? No.
There are no written questions.
Any from the telephone?
No.
No. Okay. If there are no questions, then, I'll move on. Are there any other resolutions, Mr. Chairman?
Uh-
Mr. Secretary?
There are no final written questions on the online platform.
I'll just ask again, are there any questions from the floor about our business or the investment portfolio? May I close, Mr. Secretary, if we've done all the business we should do? Well, then I close the meeting. I invite shareholders present to join us for sandwiches and biscuits at the end of the room, and talk to directors. Thank you for your attendance.