Fund-vs-fund · International Equities
Mercer Responsible Global Shares Fund vs Stewart Investors Worldwide Leaders 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 Mercer Responsible Global Shares Fund charges an annual fund fee of 1.69%, while the Stewart Investors Worldwide Leaders Fund charges 0.61% — a gap of 1.08 percentage points that compounds significantly over time. Both funds sit in the International Equities category, carry a risk indicator of 5 out of 7, and hold an almost identical growth asset allocation of 98.31%, so the fee differential is not explained by meaningful differences in asset-class exposure or stated risk profile.
On performance, Mercer discloses a five-year annualised return of 9.26%. Stewart Investors' five-year return figure is not available in this snapshot, meaning a like-for-like return comparison cannot be made at this time. Fund sizes are comparable — Mercer at approximately NZD 12.85 million and Stewart Investors at approximately NZD 12.34 million — indicating both are relatively small retail funds.
Portfolio construction diverges noticeably. Mercer's top holdings are concentrated in large-cap US technology names — Nvidia (5.29%), Apple (4.90%), and Microsoft (3.08%) — consistent with a market-cap-weighted global equities approach. Stewart Investors' top positions include Samsung Electronics (7.17%), Singapore Telecommunications (6.77%), and Watsco (4.76%), alongside a 4.67% cash-at-bank position, suggesting a more actively differentiated, quality-focused strategy with greater geographic and sector breadth away from US mega-caps.
Verify all figures against each fund's current PDS 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
- Stewart Investors Worldwide Leaders Fund charges 1.08% lower in annual fund charges (0.61% vs 1.69%).
- 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 82 international equities funds we've matched on Sorted Smart Investor. Mechanical only — no opinion, no forward-looking view.
Annual fund charge
Lower is better
Mercer
1.69%
Highest 7% of cohort
Stewart Investors
0.61%
Upper half of cohort
5-year return p.a.
Past performance — not a predictor
Mercer
9.26%
Upper half over 5 years
Stewart Investors
—
—
Fund size
Larger = more stable, lower close-risk
Mercer
NZ$13m
Smallest 11% in cohort
Stewart Investors
NZ$12m
Smallest 10% in cohort
| Metric | Mercer | Stewart Investors | Lower / higher is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual fund charge | 1.69% | 0.61% | Lower is better |
| Risk indicator (1–7) | 5 | 5 | Higher = more volatility |
| 5-year return p.a. | 9.26% | — | Higher is better (past not future) |
| Fund size | NZ$13m | NZ$12m | 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 | Yes | Yes | 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.
What each fund says it does
Mercer
Mercer Responsible Global Shares Fund
The fund invests in shares listed on international share markets managed within a sustainable approach. The fund is managed to include specific additional responsible exclusions criteria which aims to avoid investment in certain companies or activities, and is manaed 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 Australasia (RIAA). The fund aims to outperform the MSCI World Index withFull Mercer Mercer Responsible Global Shares Fund profile →
Stewart Investors
Stewart Investors Worldwide Leaders Fund
Aims to achieve its investment objective by investing in a diversified portfolio of equity or equity-related securities of larger capitalisation companies which are listed in, traded, or dealt on any of the regulated markets worldwide. The Fund does not hedge currency risk.Full Stewart Investors Stewart Investors Worldwide Leaders Fund profile →
Documents
Crawled directly from each manager's website. How we record provenance →
Stewart Investors
Common questions
What's the difference between the Mercer Responsible Global Shares Fund and the Stewart Investors Worldwide Leaders Fund?
Which fund has lower fees, Mercer Responsible Global Shares Fund or Stewart Investors Worldwide Leaders Fund?
Are both funds PIE-taxed in NZ?
Where can I read the official documents for these funds?
