Gareth: it's my understanding that most quality LICs (ARG, AUI/DUI, AFI etc.) manage to outperform the 300 accumulation index, though i'm basing this information on reports from the companies themselves which as we know are sometimes manipulated (don't include fees in the calculations etc.)
The interesting thing is if you compare pretty much any LIC to an ETF such as STW there's really a substantial difference in the long term. I'm not sure if this is because of index funds having higher yields or what but it certainly makes LICs look more attractive. There's also the fact that LICs tend to have fully franked divs plus you don't have to pay annual CGT on their rebalancing. So to me the only reason you would hold an ETF rather than a LIC is for stability (from market makers) & liquidity
Cheers,
CHO Price at posting:
$5.03 Sentiment: None Disclosure: Not Held
