Fund Evaluator:
Mercer Core Fixed Income I (MCFQX)
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Best Performing in Intermediate Core-Plus Bond Over the Last Year
| 4.1% | Diamond Hill Core Plus Bond Y (DHNYX) |
| 3.9% | Diamond Hill Core Plus Bond I (DHNIX) |
| 3.7% | Diamond Hill Core Plus Bond Investor (DHNAX) |
| 3.5% | Weitz Core Plus Income Investor (WCPNX) |
| 3.4% | Nuveen Core Plus Bond I (TCBHX) |
Fund Details
Mercer Core Fixed Income I Overview
Mercer Core Fixed Income I (MCFQX) is an actively managed Taxable Bond Intermediate Core-Plus Bond fund. Mercer Funds launched the fund in 2021.
The investment seeks to provide total return, consisting of both current income and capital appreciation. The fund invests principally in investment grade fixed income securities, including government securities, corporate bonds and securitized bonds such as mortgage and asset-backed securities. It also may invest in non-investment grade bonds (sometimes called high yield or junk bonds), non-U.S. dollar denominated bonds, bonds issued by issuers located in emerging capital markets. The fund maintains a duration within 20% of the duration of the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index.
About Mercer Core Fixed Income I (MCFQX)
There are 10 members of the management team with an average tenure of 8.60 years: Bill O'Malley (2014), Bill O'Neill (2020), Gregory Peters (2014), James Gubitosi (2016), Pranay Sonalkar (2021), Connor Minnaar (2022), Tyler Thorn (2023), Jeffrey Given (2016), Richard Piccirillo (2014), Howard Greene (2016). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 1 primary benchmark: Bloomberg US Agg Bond TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Mercer Core Fixed Income I has 2079 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 11.2% of the fund’s assets. The fund meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The fund is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
Mercer Core Fixed Income I is part of the Fixed Income global asset class and is within the Taxable Bond fund group. Mercer Core Fixed Income I has 7.4% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 0.0%. There is 0.0% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.4% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 97.7% (90.3% domestic bond, 7.4% foreign bond and 0.1% convertible bond). Mercer Core Fixed Income I has 1.8% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $12 million in total assets, which is below the $1 billion average for the Intermediate Core-Plus Bond category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.
MCFQX Performance and Fees
The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The Mercer Core Fixed Income I expense ratio is average compared to funds in the Intermediate Core-Plus Bond category. Mercer Core Fixed Income I has an expense ratio of 0.40%, which is 49% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a A. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.
High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. Mercer Core Fixed Income I has a portfolio turnover rate of 125%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 181% for the Intermediate Core-Plus Bond category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Mercer Core Fixed Income I returned -1.3%, which earned it a grade of B, as the Intermediate Core-Plus Bond category had an average return of -1.3%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all funds in that category.
Mercer Core Fixed Income I has a trailing yield of 5.58%, which is above the 4.36% category average. The fund normally distributes its income annually and its capital gains annually.
It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.
Mercer Core Fixed Income I Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned -0.6%, 0.0 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of C. The fund has returned 2.8% over the past year (grade of C), 4.0% over the past three years (grade of D) and -0.4% per year over the past five years (grade of D) and 1.8% per year over the past 10 years (grade of C).
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MCFQX Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 7/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| MCFQX Return (NAV) | -1.3% | -0.6% | 2.8% | 4.0% | -0.4% | 1.8% |
| MCFQX Grade | B | B | C | D | D | C |
| +/- Category | 0.0% | 0.1% | 0.1% | -0.1% | -0.2% | -0.0% |
| Intermediate Core-Plus Bond Avg | -1.3% | -0.7% | 2.7% | 4.2% | -0.2% | 1.8% |
| MCFQX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 3.8% | 2.3% | na | na |
MCFQX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| MCFQX Return (NAV) | -0.6% | 7.4% | 1.8% | 6.3% | -14.0% | -1.2% | 9.5% | 9.7% | -0.5% | 4.4% | 3.5% |
| MCFQX Grade | C | C | D | C | C | D | B | B | B | C | D |
| +/- Category | -0.0% | 0.1% | -0.5% | 0.1% | -0.6% | -0.6% | 0.9% | 0.5% | 0.4% | -0.1% | -0.9% |
| Intermediate Core-Plus Bond Avg | -0.6% | 7.3% | 2.3% | 6.1% | -13.4% | -0.6% | 8.6% | 9.1% | -0.9% | 4.4% | 4.3% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 5.8% |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.48 - Below Average |
| Category Risk Index: | 1.04 - Above Average |
| Category Risk Grade: | D (66% Rank) |
| Beta: | 1.03 |
| R-Squared: | 100% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | na |
| Bond Investment Style: | na |
| Yield: | 5.6% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Annually |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $2037 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 12 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Inst |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 125% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 10 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 12.3 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 8.6 years | |||
| Managers (Year): O'Malley Bill (2014), Piccirillo Richard (2014), Peters Gregory (2014), Gubitosi James (2016), Greene Howard (2016), Given Jeffrey (2016), O'Neill Bill (2020), Sonalkar Pranay (2021), Minnaar Connor (2022), Thorn Tyler (2023) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 6/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 2079 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 11.2% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 7.4% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 0.0% |
| Foreign Stock: | 0.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.4% |
| Domestic Bond: | 90.3% |
| Foreign Bond: | 7.4% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.1% |
| Other: | 0.1% |
| Cash: | 1.8% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Mercer Funds |
| Phone Number: | 888-887-0619 |
| Website: |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | December 27, 2021 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
| True No-Load: | Yes |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 2.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | na |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.40% ( Rating : Avg ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.78% |
| Share Class: | Mercer Core Fixed Income Y3 |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
