AGM 2006: minutes

Minutes of the 9th Annual General Meeting held on 11 August 2006 at the Hunting Lodge, Barrow-on-Soar


1. All members were present.

2. The minutes of the 2005 AGM held on July 24 2005 and the minutes of the semi-annual meeting on January 28 2006 had been circulated and were approved. There were no matters arising except to note that (a) the Frequent Trader account had not been utilized and would be closed, that (b) Google shares, being on the US stock market, were too expensive to trade, and (c) the target of $1000 for Dilla Clinic had been exceeded by 100%.

3. Re-appointment of officers for 2006-07:
a. Chairman: Daniel
b. Treasurer/secretary: John

4. Financial report for the year from 1 August 2005 to 31 July 2006
a The Assets Statement (with graphs, filed) showed a 52% rise in the portfolio value (including new investments) over the year, with all stocks except the Treasury bonds improving. New investment during the year had been made in F&C Multi-manager Growth Unit Trust, Speedy Hire, African Platinum and Island Oil and Gas. No sales had been made, but we had taken cash on the take-over of O2. We hold £4,301 in cash, i.e. 19% of our funds. The Unit Value is 113.11, i.e. 13.1 % above par and 10% up from a year ago. Our total assets are worth £22,478, an increase of £4,188 over the year, representing a capital gain (after adjustment for subscriptions and withdrawals) of £414.

b Unit Valuation Report (on file). All members except Joseph are now showing profits (maximum £472) overall.

c Dealings Account for the year (on file):
(i) income: Subscription income for 12 months was £3,997; dividends amounted to £187, and interest £241 (total £428).
(ii) expenditure: We had invested £5,658 in stock, donated £75 each to Chichiri prison and the NSPCC, made a £500 grant to a member for career development, and spent £20 on the annual dinner at 16 Devonshire Avenue.
(iii) loan: We had made a £2000 loan to a member which has since been repaid in full.
(iv) withdrawals: Two members had each withdrawn £1000 from their stakes.


5. Proposals

A. Declaration of dividend. It was agreed (a) to declare a dividend equivalent to the overall capital gain of £414, and (b) to split it equally between members rather than in proportion to their share-holding. Each member would therefore receive a dividend of £70, and some agreed to donate theirs to the Dilla Clinic.

B. Subscriptions for 2006-07. No change, each member paying in at least £50 per calendar month. Members were encouraged to review their subscriptions each year.

C. Investments: it was agreed to invest £1000 in each of these companies/funds
a. BP [proposed by Joseph]
b. First State China Growth Fund [John]. A further £300 would be invested each quarter.

D. Charitable activities
We agreed to continue to support the Dilla Clinic in Ethiopia, with a more ambitious target and fund-raising initiatives.

E. AGM in 2007
It was agreed to mark the tenth anniversary of the Club’s founding with a professional portrait photograph and explore the possibility of a wider family celebration gathering.

F. Website [www.patrickfamily.org.uk, with the Blog and the Flickr photo portfolio]
It was agreed to widen the scope of the family website.

G. Membership. There was some unresolved discussion of the merits of extending the Club’s membership.

6. Amendments to Constitution and Rules: none had been proposed

7. There was no other business, and lunch was served before embarking for a barge trip on the river Soar.

How the value of our investments has increased

Report for July 2006

July was another volatile month which ended with the FTSE100 2% higher at 5975 and our portfolio 4% higher at £18,176. Our Unit Value was 1% higher at 113.11 (see graph).

Both Tesco and Severn Trent did us proud with gains of around 10% during July. Only Island Oil & Gas fell materially, by 9%, but that loss has since been reversed by a dramatic gain in early-August on the announcement of a significant oil find in the Celtic Sea. African Platinum rose 10%, despite (or because of) the removal of the Chairman of the Board!

Another tranche of F&C Multi-manager Growth Fund Units have been purchased. The outstanding loan has been repaid, so we now have 20% of our assets as cash.