Fund-vs-fund · Australasian Equities
Harbour Australasian Equity Income Fund vs Mercer Responsible Trans-Tasman Shares Fund
Both are Australasian 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 their risk profile: the Mercer Responsible Trans-Tasman Shares Fund carries a risk indicator of 5, one step higher than the Harbour Australasian Equity Income Fund's indicator of 4, both measured on the standard 1–7 scale. This difference is notable despite both funds allocating an identical 98.31% to growth assets, suggesting the divergence stems from underlying volatility characteristics of the respective portfolios rather than asset allocation alone.
On returns, the gap is stark over the five-year period captured in the latest quarterly fund updates: Harbour returns 2.81% per annum against Mercer's 0.01%. Fees are close but not identical — Harbour charges 1.10% annually versus Mercer's 1.06%. Fund sizes are similarly scaled, at approximately NZD 34.9 million and NZD 31.7 million respectively.
Portfolio construction differs meaningfully. Harbour's top holding is Contact Energy at 9.84%, with Infratil second at 9.64%, reflecting a concentrated income-oriented tilt. Mercer's largest position is Fisher & Paykel Healthcare at 16.29%, with Infratil second at 10.52%; Mercer's "Responsible" label signals an explicit ESG screen that Harbour's mandate does not publicly incorporate in the same way. Both funds share exposure to Contact Energy and Infratil, but at different weights.
Neither fund is a KiwiSaver scheme account product based on the data provided here. 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.
Comparison generated 2026-07-05 from each fund's FMA Disclose QFU facts as at that date. If the underlying facts change, this narrative is withheld until it is regenerated — the tables on this page always reflect the current data.
What's different at a glance
- Annual fund charges are within 0.05% of each other (1.10% vs 1.06%).
- Both are New Zealand PIE funds — investor tax is capped at the Prescribed Investor Rate (PIR), maximum 28%.
- Mercer Responsible Trans-Tasman Shares Fund applies responsible-investment / ESG screening. The other fund does not.
Where each fund sits in its cohort
Percentile rank vs all 58 australasian equities funds we've matched on Sorted Smart Investor. Mechanical only — no opinion, no forward-looking view.
Annual fund charge
Lower is better
Harbour
1.10%
Upper half of cohort
Mercer
1.06%
Upper half of cohort
5-year return p.a.
Past performance — not a predictor
Harbour
2.81%
Upper half over 5 years
Mercer
0.01%
Bottom 1% over 5 years
Fund size
Larger = more stable, lower close-risk
Harbour
NZ$35m
Lower half by size
Mercer
NZ$32m
Lower half by size
| Metric | Harbour | Mercer | Lower / higher is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual fund charge | 1.10% | 1.06% | Lower is better |
| Risk indicator (1–7) | 4 | 5 | Higher = more volatility |
| 5-year return p.a. | 2.81% | 0.01% | Higher is better (past not future) |
| Fund size | NZ$35m | NZ$32m | 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.
Matching holdings
5
of each fund's top 10
Harbour weight in shared
34.6%
of Harbour Australasian Equity Income Fund top 10 is shared
Mercer weight in shared
29.8%
of Mercer Responsible Trans-Tasman Shares Fund top 10 is shared
| Holding | Harbour | Mercer |
|---|---|---|
 Infratil NZ | 9.64% | 10.52% |
 Contact Energy NZ | 9.84% | 7.11% |
 Mainfreight NZ | 6.58% | 5.01% |
 EBOS Group NZ | 4.48% | 4.15% |
 Spark New Zealand NZ | 4.01% | 3.05% |
"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
Harbour
Harbour Australasian Equity Income Fund
The Fund is an actively managed strategy that invests predominantly in New Zealand and Australian listed equities that generate attractive dividend yields as well as cash and fixed interest securities.Full Harbour Harbour Australasian Equity Income Fund profile →
Mercer
Mercer Responsible Trans-Tasman Shares Fund
The fund is a diversified portfolio of predominantly New Zealand shares across a range of industries and sectors. The portfolio may also invest in Australian shares. The fund is managed to include specific additional responsible exclusions criteria which aims to avoid investments in certain companies or activities, and is managed with reference to environmental, social and governance factors. This fund has additional exclusions applied as described in our Sustainable Investment Policy and has been certified by the Responsible Investment Association of AustralasiaFull Mercer Mercer Responsible Trans-Tasman Shares Fund profile →
Documents
Crawled directly from each manager's website. How we record provenance →
Harbour
LiveLast verified 2026-05-08
Common questions
What's the difference between the Harbour Australasian Equity Income Fund and the Mercer Responsible Trans-Tasman Shares Fund?
Which fund has lower fees, Harbour Australasian Equity Income Fund or Mercer Responsible Trans-Tasman Shares Fund?
How do the 5-year returns compare?
Are both funds PIE-taxed in NZ?
Does either fund apply responsible-investment screening?
Where can I read the official documents for these funds?
