Fund-vs-fund · International Equities
Brandywine Global Opportunistic Equity Fund vs Russell Investments Sustainable Global Shares Fund
Both are International Equities funds available to NZ retail investors. Numbers below are sourced from the FMA Disclose register via Sorted Smart Investor and reflect the latest published quarterly fund updates.
Why these two differ
The most material structural difference between these two funds is cost. The Russell Investments Sustainable Global Shares Fund discloses an annual fund charge of 0.33%, while the Brandywine Global Opportunistic Equity Fund charges 0.93% — a gap of 0.60 percentage points that compounds meaningfully over time across both funds' similar sizes (NZD 383m and NZD 410m respectively).
Beyond fees, the funds diverge sharply in investment philosophy and portfolio construction. Russell's fund applies a sustainability screen and concentrates its top holdings in large-cap US technology names — NVIDIA, Apple, Microsoft, and Amazon dominate — alongside an S&P 500 futures position, suggesting a broadly index-aware approach with ESG constraints. Brandywine's fund, managed under the Franklin Templeton umbrella, takes an explicitly opportunistic, value-oriented stance: its disclosed top holdings span Chinese internet (Baidu), European financials (BNP Paribas), aircraft leasing (AerCap), and consumer staples (Kimberly-Clark), with a 4.55% position in US Dollar cash. This reflects a more concentrated, contrarian, globally diversified mandate with no visible sustainability overlay.
Both funds carry a risk indicator of 5 out of 7 and hold 98.31% in growth assets, placing them in equivalent volatility bands. Five-year return data is unavailable for both funds in this snapshot, so historical performance cannot be compared here. Neither fund is linked to a KiwiSaver scheme account in the data provided.
Verify all figures against each fund's current Product Disclosure Statement and latest Quarterly Fund Update on FMA Disclose before relying on this summary.
Cached comparison generated 2026-05-21 from each fund's latest FMA Disclose QFU. Regenerated when the underlying facts change.
What's different at a glance
- Russell Investments Sustainable Global Shares Fund charges 0.60% lower in annual fund charges (0.33% vs 0.93%).
- Both are New Zealand PIE funds — investor tax is capped at the Prescribed Investor Rate (PIR), maximum 28%.
- Russell Investments Sustainable Global Shares Fund applies responsible-investment / ESG screening. The other fund does not.
Where each fund sits in its cohort
Percentile rank vs all 81 international equities funds we've matched on Sorted Smart Investor. Mechanical only — no opinion, no forward-looking view.
Annual fund charge
Lower is better
Brandywine
0.93%
Upper half of cohort
Russell Investments
0.33%
Lowest 21% of cohort
5-year return p.a.
Past performance — not a predictor
Brandywine
—
—
Russell Investments
—
—
Fund size
Larger = more stable, lower close-risk
Brandywine
NZ$410m
Largest 18% in cohort
Russell Investments
NZ$364m
Largest 19% in cohort
| Metric | Brandywine | Russell Investments | Lower / higher is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual fund charge | 0.93% | 0.33% | Lower is better |
| Risk indicator (1–7) | 5 | 4 | Higher = more volatility |
| 5-year return p.a. | — | — | Higher is better (past not future) |
| Fund size | NZ$410m | NZ$364m | Larger = more stable, lower close-risk |
| Growth / income split | 98% / 2% | 98% / 2% | More growth = higher long-run return + volatility |
| NZ tax structure | PIE (PIR-capped) | PIE (PIR-capped) | PIE = simpler. FIF = annual return. |
| Currency hedging | — | — | Hedged smooths NZD/foreign FX moves at a small cost. |
| Responsible investment screening | No | Yes | Specific exclusions live in each fund's SIPO. |
| Available via | Direct | Direct | Platforms accepting retail subscriptions. |
Portfolio overlap
How many top-10 positions both funds hold, and at what weight. Computed from each fund's most recently disclosed top-10 holdings — exact-name matched (Microsoft Corp. = Microsoft Corporation), with a Cash / Cash & Equivalents collapse rule.
What each fund says it does
Brandywine
Brandywine Global Opportunistic Equity Fund
The Equity Fund will invest into an underlying fund that holds an actively managed portfolio of global equity and equity-related securities such as convertible securities (excluding contingent convertible securities), warrants, American depositary receipts (ADRs), global depositary receipts (GDRs), and preferred stock, including from emerging market issuers. Further details of the underlying fund are contained in the OMI and SIPO. The Equity Fund may, from time to time, use derivatives to hedge foreign currency risk.Full Brandywine Brandywine Global Opportunistic Equity Fund profile →
Russell Investments
Russell Investments Sustainable Global Shares Fund
The Fund invests predominantly in a broad range of international shares listed on stock exchanges in developed and emerging international markets. The Fund targets a lower carbon exposure, and higher Climate Solutions Revenue, compared to the Benchmark. The Fund also employs certain investment exclusions, please refer to the SIPO for further details. Derivatives may be used to obtain or reduce exposure to securities and markets, to implement investment strategies and to manage risk. Foreign currency exposures are unhedged.Full Russell Investments Russell Investments Sustainable Global Shares Fund profile →
Common questions
What's the difference between the Brandywine Global Opportunistic Equity Fund and the Russell Investments Sustainable Global Shares Fund?
Which fund has lower fees, Brandywine Global Opportunistic Equity Fund or Russell Investments Sustainable Global Shares Fund?
Are both funds PIE-taxed in NZ?
Does either fund apply responsible-investment screening?
Where can I read the official documents for these funds?
