FIRST TRUST

MLP AND ENERGY INCOME FUND (FEI)

SEMI-ANNUALREPORT

FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED

APRIL 30, 2022

Table of Contents

First Trust MLP and Energy Income Fund (FEI)

Semi-Annual Report

April 30, 2022

Shareholder Letter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

At a Glance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Portfolio Commentary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Portfolio of Investments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Statement of Assets and Liabilities. . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Statement of Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Statements of Changes in Net Assets. . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Statement of Cash Flows . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Financial Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Notes to Financial Statements. . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Additional Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This report contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding the goals, beliefs, plans or current expectations of First Trust Advisors L.P. ("First Trust" or the "Advisor") and/or Energy Income Partners, LLC ("EIP" or the "Sub-Advisor") and their respective representatives, taking into account the information currently available to them. Forward-looking statements include all statements that do not relate solely to current or historical fact. For example, forward-looking statements include the use of words such as "anticipate," "estimate," "intend," "expect," "believe," "plan," "may," "should," "would" or other words that convey uncertainty of future events or outcomes.

Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of First Trust MLP and Energy Income Fund (the "Fund") to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. When evaluating the information included in this report, you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which reflect the judgment of the Advisor and/or Sub-Advisor and their respective representatives only as of the date hereof. We undertake no obligation to publicly revise or update these forward-looking statements to reflect events and circumstances that arise after the date hereof.

Performance and Risk Disclosure

There is no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. The Fund is subject to market risk, which is the possibility that the market values of securities owned by the Fund will decline and that the value of the Fund's shares may therefore be less than what you paid for them. Accordingly, you can lose money by investing in the Fund. See "Principal Risks" in the Additional Information section of this report for a discussion of certain other risks of investing in the Fund.

Performance data quoted represents past performance, which is no guarantee of future results, and current performance may be lower or higher than the figures shown. For the most recent month-end performance figures, please visit www.ftportfolios.comor speak with your financial advisor. Investment returns, net asset value and common share price will fluctuate and Fund shares, when sold, may be worth more or less than their original cost.

The Advisor may also periodically provide additional information on Fund performance on the Fund's web page at www.ftportfolios.com.

How to Read This Report

This report contains information that may help you evaluate your investment in the Fund. It includes details about the Fund and presents data and analysis that provide insight into the Fund's performance and investment approach.

By reading the portfolio commentary by the portfolio management team of the Fund, you may obtain an understanding of how the market environment affected the Fund's performance. The statistical information that follows may help you understand the Fund's performance compared to that of relevant market benchmarks.

It is important to keep in mind that the opinions expressed by personnel of First Trust and EIP are just that: informed opinions. They should not be considered to be promises or advice. The opinions, like the statistics, cover the period through the date on the cover of this report. The material risks of investing in the Fund are spelled out in the prospectus, the statement of additional information, this report and other Fund regulatory filings.

Shareholder Letter

First Trust MLP and Energy Income Fund (FEI)

Semi-Annual Letter from the Chairman and CEO

April 30, 2022

Dear Shareholders,

First Trust is pleased to provide you with the semi-annual report for the First Trust MLP and Energy Income Fund (the "Fund"), which contains detailed information about the Fund for the six months ended April 30, 2022.

A couple of famous financial industry quotes came to mind recently as I was sizing up the current business climate: "There's no such thing as a free lunch" and "Don't fight the Fed!" It seems that for some, the trillions of dollars of financial stimulus funneled into U.S. households and businesses by the Federal government and its agencies to help mitigate the fallout stemming from the coronavirus ("COVID-19") pandemic, which commenced sometime around February 2020, was for all intents and purposes "free money." It was not free. From the close of February 2020 through March 2022, the Federal Reserve (the "Fed") expanded the U.S. money supply, known as M2, by 41% to $21.81 trillion to boost liquidity in the financial system. Normally, M2 grows around 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. When you factor in that all this new capital was accompanied by a breakdown of the global supply chain, there is little wonder why inflation is rampant.

One of the more common definitions of inflation is too many dollars chasing too few goods. The biggest downside to the supply chain bottlenecks, such as the severe backup of container ships at some U.S. ports, is that they have markedly reduced the flow of imported goods to retailers. The Fed has been signaling to Americans and the rest of the globe that, after many years of artificially low interest rates, tighter monetary policy will likely rule the day for the foreseeable future. Higher interest rates make borrowing capital more expensive and that should slow consumption over time, which, in turn, should bring down inflation. Don't fight the Fed is code for don't bet against the Fed, in my opinion. Stay tuned!

The primary job of the Fed is price stability. Its standard inflation target rate is 2.0%. The most recent Consumer Price Index release showed that prices were up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis as of April 30, 2022, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. While down from 8.5% the prior month, it is clearly elevated and that means the Fed has some work to do to with respect to mitigating inflation. The war between Russia and Ukraine is making the Fed's job even tougher, particularly in the areas of food and energy. Rising costs and potential shortages could become even bigger if the COVID-19 outbreak in China grows. These are important events to monitor. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell has stated that the Fed is poised to raise the Federal Funds target rate (upper bound) by 50 basis points at each of its next two meetings (set for June and July), which would take the rate up to 2.00%. Data from CME Group indicates that current market pricing has the rate rising to 2.75% or 3.00% by year-end.

Securities markets do not go up in a straight line and they do not just go up year in and year out. In fact, what we have witnessed over the past couple of decades are often referred to as boom and bust cycles. Thankfully, it has ended up more boom than bust. Simply put, investors, not traders of the market, need to be willing to take the bad with the good. As the various stages of an economic cycle come and go (expansion to contraction), the markets tend to reprice securities to reflect the current narrative. In other words, we believe the markets essentially heal themselves − if you let them. That is an accurate depiction of how the markets have behaved so far in 2022, in my opinion. In response to a softening economy, the stock and bond markets have experienced some serious downside through the first four months of this year, as measured by the broader market indices. As of today, Brian Wesbury, Chief Economist at First Trust, is not forecasting a recession for the U.S. in 2022 or 2023. Whether he is proven right or wrong, we encourage investors to stay the course.

Thank you for giving First Trust the opportunity to play a role in your financial future. We value our relationship with you and will report on the Fund again in six months.

Sincerely,

James A. Bowen

Chairman of the Board of Trustees

Chief Executive Officer of First Trust Advisors L.P.

Page 1

First Trust MLP and Energy Income Fund (FEI)

"AT A GLANCE"

As of April 30, 2022 (Unaudited)

Fund Statistics

Symbol on New York Stock Exchange

FEI

Common Share Price

$8.02

Common Share Net Asset Value ("NAV")

$9.14

Premium (Discount) to NAV

(12.25)%

Net Assets Applicable to Common Shares

$413,390,790

Current Distribution per Common Share(1)

$0.0500

Current Annualized Distribution per Common Share

$0.6000

Current Distribution Rate on Common Share Price(2)

7.48%

Current Distribution Rate on NAV(2)

6.56%

Common Share Price & NAV (weekly closing price)

Common Share Price

NAV

$10.00

$9.00

$8.00

$7.00

$6.00

1

21

1

21

1

9/21

10/21

1

/21

2

2

2

2

/2

/2

2

/2

/2

/2

2

/2

4

5/

6

7/

8/

1

2

1

2

3/

4

1

1

Performance

Average Annual

Total Returns

6 Months

1 Year

5 Years

Inception

Ended

Ended

Ended

(11/27/12)

4/30/22

4/30/22

4/30/22

to 4/30/22

Fund Performance(3)

NAV

14.35%

21.36%

-0.70%

1.12%

Market Value

9.39%

16.31%

-4.06%

-0.76%

Index Performance

S&P 500® Index

-9.65%

0.21%

13.64%

14.38%

Alerian MLP Total Return Index

13.70%

27.34%

0.17%

0.82%

  1. Most recent distribution paid or declared through April 30, 2022. Subject to change in the future.
  2. Distribution rates are calculated by annualizing the most recent distribution paid or declared through the report date and then dividing by Common Share Price or NAV, as applicable, as of April 30, 2022. Subject to change in the future.
  3. Total return is based on the combination of reinvested dividend, capital gain, and return of capital distributions, if any, at prices obtained by the Dividend Reinvestment Plan and changes in NAV per share for NAV returns and changes in Common Share Price for market value returns. Total returns do not reflect sales load and are not annualized for periods of less than one year. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

Page 2

First Trust MLP and Energy Income Fund (FEI) "AT A GLANCE" (Continued)

As of April 30, 2022 (Unaudited)

% of Total

Industry Classification

Investments

Petroleum Product Transmission

30.6%

Electric Power & Transmission

24.0

Natural Gas Transmission

23.6

Crude Oil Transmission

11.3

Natural Gas Gathering & Processing

4.0

Propane

1.2

Other

5.3

Total

100.0%

  1. Includes swap contracts.

% of Total

Top Ten Holdings

Investments

Enterprise Products Partners, L.P.

7.9%

Magellan Midstream Partners, L.P.

7.4

Cheniere Energy Partners, L.P.

6.4

Energy Transfer, L.P.

6.3

Williams (The) Cos., Inc.

4.8

TC Energy Corp.

4.7

DT Midstream, Inc.

4.5

MPLX, L.P.

3.6

Hess Midstream, L.P., Class A

3.5

ONEOK, Inc.

3.0

Total

52.1%

Fund Allocation

% of Net Assets

Common Stocks

65.5%

Master Limited Partnerships

57.0

Call Options Written

(0.1)

Outstanding Loans

(24.2)

Net Other Assets and Liabilities(4)

1.8

Total

100.0%

Page 3

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Disclaimer

First Trust MLP and Energy Income Fund published this content on 22 June 2022 and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 29 June 2022 19:11:07 UTC.