Lincoln IPO: an investment adviser with an M&A focus has gone public

Preliminary trading in shares of Lincoln International, an investment banking advisory firm, has begun on the Freedom client trading system. The company capitalized on a successful investment bank reporting season and listed, becoming the first member of the sector to venture into the sector since mid-2021, Morningstar notes. Lincoln International's securities will appear on the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) under the ticker LCLN later on Ma. 20. To participate, click on the ticker LCLN.

Lincoln International has successfully raised $421 million in an IPO. The company placed 21 million shares at $20 per paper, which corresponds to the upper limit of the previously announced price range ($18-20). Based on the results of the IPO, the value of the entire company can be estimated at $2.04 billion, writes Reuters.

The listing was organized by Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, BMO Capital Markets, Citizens Capital Markets and Evercore ISI.

Founded in 1996, the Chicago-headquartered investment banking advisor specializes in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) advisory services and transaction support. Lincoln International also advises on capital raising and other financial solutions for private equity firms and publicly traded firms worldwide. The firm has approximately 1,400 employees working in offices in 14 countries, with a presence in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

Lincoln International's M&A division specializes in private equity transactions ranging from $250 million to $2 billion and primarily represents private equity funds in the sale of portfolio companies, Morningstar writes. The firm also advises firms on debt restructurings, conducts asset valuations and prepares expert opinions on private equity transactions.

In late 2025, Lincoln acquired MarshBerry, a consulting firm specializing in insurance brokerage and asset management. The company also expanded by acquiring investment bank Spurrier Capital Partners in 2022 and TCG Corporate Finance in 2024.

Lincoln's 2025 net income jumped 30.9% to $214.1 million, while revenue rose 35.4% to $783.8 million, the company said in a prospectus filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). A key driver of the growth was the revitalization of the investment bank's M&A advisory business. Global M&A activity set an all-time record in 2025, Morningstar recalls, with both total deal value and the number of transactions in this area surpassing previous highs in 2021. Against this backdrop, in a filing to the SEC, Lincoln management forecasts a "larger and more sustainable pool of fee income in the M&A market," particularly in the private equity segment.

In the coming years, activity in the M&A market will continue to grow, says Morningstar. It will be spurred on and support demand for advisory services in this area, as the publication points out, including: large volumes of unrealized assets in private equity fund portfolios, record levels of unallocated capital, as well as increasing pressure on sponsors to provide liquidity. Lincoln International believes that all of this will allow the company to markedly increase its market share and fee income.

In general, Lincoln's growth strategy is based on expansion through acquisitions (e.g., MarshBerry), selling additional consulting services (cross-selling), and deepening client relationships, notes Donovan Jones, an expert at analyst firm IPO Edge, in a Seeking Alpha commentary.

At the same time, investors should consider uncertainties, namely the company's high dependence of its business on macroeconomic cycles in the M&A market and intense competition in all key areas, Jones says. Among Lincoln International's publicly traded rivals, he names Raymond James, Evercore, Lazard, Houlihan Lokey, Jefferies, Moelis & Company and PJT Partners.

The financial position of Lincoln International before listing looked stable, the expert notes: at the end of 2025 the company had $320.2 million of cash and cash equivalents with total liabilities of $679.5 million (of which $270.4 million is long-term debt). The company's free cash flow of $214.4 million in 2025 with capital expenditures of $1.9 million spoke about the low capital intensity of the business, which is typical for the financial services industry, notes Jones.

After the IPO, Lincoln's co-founders and top executives will hold control of the company, according to the company's prospectus for the SEC. They include Lincoln Chairman Lawrence James Lawson III, co-founder Robert Bruce Barr, Lincoln CEO Robert Todd Brown and mergers chief Eric Dennis Malchow, among others. They plan to use the proceeds of the listing to, among other things, cover the costs of the IPO, repay existing credit facilities, repurchase stakes from a number of Lincoln partners, and use the remainder for general corporate purposes.

According to Jones, such capital allocation is one of the disadvantages of the offering: instead of investing in business development, part of the raised funds will be used to pay partners and repay debts. Among other hidden risks for investors, he singles out the multi-class share structure, which secures tight control over the founders.

According to Mergermarket data, for the three years ended December 31, 2025, Lincoln was the second-largest private equity adviser in the world, notes Freedom Finance analyst Alem Bektemirov. The fair valuation of the company, according to his data, is $2.109 billion or $20.68 per share - this target implies the potential growth of Lincoln securities by 3.4% relative to the offering price. The main risks for the company's business the expert calls retention of key personnel, market conditions and competition in the sector of investment banking.

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Freedom clients will be able to get access to shares of Lincoln International before the opening of the main exchange session. Trading will begin in the early pre-market format 2-3 hours before the opening of the U.S. exchanges (from 15:30-16:30 Astana time). To participate click on ticker LCLN.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor