Nikko wins Morningstar's NZ Fund Manager of Year award

Nikko Asset Management has won Morningstar's NZ Fund Manager of Year. Photo/File

Nikko Asset Management has won Morningstar's New Zealand Fund Manager of the Year award for the second year in a row.

Finalists for fund Manager of the year were Harbour Asset Management and Milford Asset Management.

Tim Murphy, Morningstar's director of manager research, Asia -Pacific, said markets posted a mixed bag of returns in 2018, and the list of fund managers nominated for the awards all demonstrated an ability to add value over the year and consistently reward over the long-term.

"New Zealand investors have an increasing source of high-quality investment options to choose from, with Nikko Asset Management being the stand-out asset manager for 2018," Murphy said.

The firm was again a finalist in all three asset class categories, illustrating an "impressive consistency of performance" across the board, Murphy said in a statement.

"Nikko has reinvigorated its business in recent years, improvements in its domestic capabilities complemented by a strong new global offering, leaving investors with a range of good quality options to choose from," Murphy said.

"These traits led to peer-beating outcomes for their investors, cementing Nikko's case as the outstanding fund manager of 2018," he said.

Nikko, one of Asia's biggest fund managers, was a finalist in all three asset class categories.

Other prize winners were:

Fund Manager of the Year: Domestic Equities - Mint Australia NZ Active Equity
Fund Manager of the Year: International Equities - T. Rowe Price Global Equity Growth
Fund Manager of the Year: Fixed Interest - AMP Capital NZ
Fund Manager of the Year: KiwiSaver - Milford Asset Management