Fund-vs-fund · Other
First Sentier Global Listed Infrastructure Fund vs Mercer Global Listed Infrastructure Fund
Both are Other 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 their five-year return history alongside a meaningful fee gap. The Mercer Global Listed Infrastructure Fund has returned 8.36% per annum over five years, compared with 3.26% for the First Sentier Global Listed Infrastructure Fund — a divergence of just over five percentage points over the same period. Alongside this, Mercer charges a higher annual fund charge of 1.34% versus First Sentier's 1.03%, meaning investors in the Mercer fund have paid more in fees while receiving a materially different return outcome over that window. Both funds carry a risk indicator of 5 out of 7 and hold an identical growth assets allocation of 98.31%, placing them in structurally similar risk territory despite different managers and portfolio construction. First Sentier is the larger fund at approximately NZD 128.8 million versus Mercer's NZD 83.8 million. Both portfolios are concentrated in North American listed infrastructure, with American Electric Power appearing in both top-five holdings lists; Mercer's top positions skew toward US utilities and energy pipelines, while First Sentier's disclosed top holdings include a notable 5.28% cash position at BNZ alongside Duke Energy and Union Pacific. Neither fund is a KiwiSaver scheme account product based on the data provided. Readers should verify all figures — including fees, returns, and holdings — against each fund's current Product Disclosure Statement and latest Quarterly Fund Update on FMA Disclose before relying on any of this information.
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
- First Sentier Global Listed Infrastructure Fund charges 0.31% lower in annual fund charges (1.03% vs 1.34%).
- Both are New Zealand PIE funds — investor tax is capped at the Prescribed Investor Rate (PIR), maximum 28%.
Where each fund sits in its cohort
Percentile rank vs all 8 other funds we've matched on Sorted Smart Investor. Mechanical only — no opinion, no forward-looking view.
Annual fund charge
Lower is better
First Sentier
1.03%
Lower half of cohort
Mercer
1.34%
Upper half of cohort
5-year return p.a.
Past performance — not a predictor
First Sentier
3.26%
Lower half over 5 years
Mercer
8.36%
Top 25% over 5 years
Fund size
Larger = more stable, lower close-risk
First Sentier
NZ$129m
Upper half by size
Mercer
NZ$84m
Lower half by size
| Metric | First Sentier | Mercer | Lower / higher is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual fund charge | 1.03% | 1.34% | Lower is better |
| Risk indicator (1–7) | 5 | 5 | Higher = more volatility |
| 5-year return p.a. | 3.26% | 8.36% | Higher is better (past not future) |
| Fund size | NZ$129m | NZ$84m | 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 | No | Specific exclusions live in each fund's SIPO. |
| Available via | InvestNow · Direct | InvestNow · 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.
Matching holdings
2
of each fund's top 10
First Sentier weight in shared
8.6%
of First Sentier Global Listed Infrastructure Fund top 10 is shared
Mercer weight in shared
9.7%
of Mercer Global Listed Infrastructure Fund top 10 is shared
| Holding | First Sentier | Mercer |
|---|---|---|
| AE American Electric Power Company Inc US | 4.66% | 4.46% |
| NE Nextera Energy Inc US | 3.94% | 5.21% |
"Min weight" = the smaller of the two weights — a conservative read of how much exposure you'd have to that position if you held both funds.
What each fund says it does
First Sentier
First Sentier Global Listed Infrastructure Fund
The Fund invests in the shares of infrastructure companies from around the world. The infrastructure sector includes operating assets from the transport, utilities, energy and communications sectors. The strategy is based on active, bottom-up security selection which seeks to identify mispricing. The Fund seeks to minimise risk through on-the-ground research, focus on quality, and sensible portfolio construction. The Fund takes into account ESG considerations in relation to selection, retention and realisation of investments. Currency exposure will be hedged backFull First Sentier First Sentier Global Listed Infrastructure Fund profile →
Mercer
Mercer Global Listed Infrastructure Fund
The fund invests in infrastructure securities in both developed and emerging markets across a range of sectors. This provides access to a range of infrastructure sectors across geographic regions, with active portfolio management that seeks to target excess returns and predictable, stable cash flows. Environmental, Social and Governance characteristics are integrated into the investment process. The fund aims to provide total returns (income and capital growth) after costs and before tax, above the FTSE Developed Core Infrastructure 50/50 Index (100% hedged to theFull Mercer Mercer Global Listed Infrastructure Fund profile →
Documents
Crawled directly from each manager's website. How we record provenance →
First Sentier
Common questions
What's the difference between the First Sentier Global Listed Infrastructure Fund and the Mercer Global Listed Infrastructure Fund?
Which fund has lower fees, First Sentier Global Listed Infrastructure Fund or Mercer Global Listed Infrastructure Fund?
How do the 5-year returns compare?
Are both funds PIE-taxed in NZ?
Where can I read the official documents for these funds?
