The Veterans Pension Benefit: What It Is and How to Get It

On Memorial Day, we honor those who gave their lives for our country, and we also recognize the service of millions of current and former members of the U.S. Armed Forces. Veterans are entitled to certain benefits as a result of their having served, including healthcare, education, home loans, insurance, and employment services.

One little-known benefit for veterans focuses on those former servicemembers who face financial hardship. The Veterans Pension Benefit provides modest amounts of regular monthly income for veterans who qualify, and it can make a big difference for those who are struggling to make ends meet.

Image source: Getty Images.

Who's eligible for the Veterans Pension Benefit?

The Veterans Pension Benefit is intended to help veterans and their families deal with financial difficulties. In order to qualify, a veteran usually needs to have served for at least 90 days in active duty status. Those who first entered active duty in September 1980 or later have a longer active duty requirement, as they must typically have served at least 24 months or the full period for which the service member was called or ordered to active duty.

In both cases, the veteran must have served at least one day during a wartime period. Those periods include the Gulf War, which began in August 1990 and hasn't yet had an ending date set, as well as Vietnam, Korea, and World Wars I and II.

In order to qualify for the Veterans Pension Benefit, you must generally be age 65 or older. Exceptions for younger veterans exist if you're totally and permanently disabled, receiving skilled nursing care in a nursing home or skilled nursing facility, or receiving Social Security Disability Insurance or Supplemental Security Income through the Social Security Administration.

How much is the Veterans Pension Benefit?

Calculating the Veterans Pension Benefit is fairly complicated, because the laws that govern the benefit establish annual maximum amounts and then require you to offset any financial resources you have against it. In particular, your pension benefit will generally be equal to the annual pension limit that Congress sets and the amount of income that gets counted against that limit.

The maximum annual pension amount is determined according to which of several categories you fall into. The table below gives the maximums and the categories effective as of Dec. 1, 2017.

Category

Maximum Annual Pension Rate

No spouse or child	$13,166
1 dependent	$17,241
Housebound with no dependents	$16,089
Housebound with 1 dependent	$20,166
No dependents but needs aid and assistance	$21,962
1 dependent and needs aid and assistance	$26,036
2 veterans married to each other	$17,241
2 married veterans with 1 housebound	$20,166
2 married veterans with both housebound	$23,087
2 married veterans with 1 needing aid and assistance	$26,036
2 married veterans, 1 needing aid and assistance and 1 housebound	$28,953
2 married veterans, both needing aid and assistance	$34,837

Data source: Veterans Administration.

In addition, those who served in World War I or the Mexican Border period in the 1910s are entitled to an additional $2,991 in income. You should also add $2,250 for each additional child.

Once you've determined the appropriate maximum benefit, you then need to come up with your countable income. This figure includes income from most sources, including work earnings, disability and retirement payments, investment income, and money you make from a farm or business. The amount of your pension will generally be the maximum benefit minus your countable income. So if you have no spouse or child and have $10,000 in income, then your pension would be $13,166 minus $10,000 or $3,166 per year, paid in 12 monthly installments.

You're allowed in some cases to offset unreimbursed medical expenses against your countable income in order to raise the amount of your Veterans Pension. In order to be deducted, unreimbursed medical expenses must exceed 5% of the pension rate in the table above.

Will outside assets take away my Veterans Pension?

There's also an asset test that prevents those who have ample financial resources from taking advantage of the Veterans Pension program. In general, if the Veterans Administration determines that you could live off money in bank accounts or proceeds from stocks, bonds, mutual funds, annuities, and any property other than your personal residence, then it can deny benefits. There's no hard-and-fast rule for how much of a net worth is too high, and there's substantial discretion given to the administrative personnel at the VA in making the final determination.

How do I apply for my Veterans Pension?

To apply, you can go to the VA's online application here. Alternatively, you can complete VA Form 21P-527EZ and either mail it to the pension management center that serves veterans in the state where you live, or you can visit your local regional benefit office in person to turn in your application. For details on where the nearest office is, you can use the VA's facility locator, accessible on the VA website for pension benefits.

Get the benefits you deserve

If you've served in the military, you've earned the respect and recognition that Americans give you on Memorial Day. Learning about the Veterans Pension Benefit and other benefits available to servicemembers is important in order to allow the country to recognize your service with honor and dignity.

SAP SE (SAP) Stake Lessened by Mondrian Investment Partners LTD

Mondrian Investment Partners LTD trimmed its position in shares of SAP SE (NYSE:SAP) by 9.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 362,866 shares of the software maker’s stock after selling 37,000 shares during the quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD’s holdings in SAP were worth $40,216,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of SAP. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its stake in shares of SAP by 27.9% during the first quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 1,218,224 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $128,109,000 after acquiring an additional 265,462 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in SAP by 244.7% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 340,357 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $35,792,000 after buying an additional 241,605 shares during the period. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP grew its position in SAP by 6.0% during the first quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP now owns 3,099,490 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $325,943,000 after buying an additional 176,456 shares during the period. WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new position in SAP during the fourth quarter worth about $15,504,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in SAP by 21.3% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 595,675 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $66,930,000 after buying an additional 104,479 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 10.75% of the company’s stock.

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Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. ValuEngine lowered shares of SAP from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 22nd. Barclays upped their target price on shares of SAP from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 25th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “neutral” rating and set a target price on shares of SAP in a research report on Tuesday, April 24th. BMO Capital Markets restated a “hold” rating and set a $116.00 target price on shares of SAP in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus restated a “sell” rating and set a $74.00 target price (down from $80.00) on shares of SAP in a research report on Thursday, March 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $110.80.

SAP stock opened at $114.03 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $140.09 billion, a PE ratio of 26.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 1.12. SAP SE has a 12 month low of $99.20 and a 12 month high of $116.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

SAP (NYSE:SAP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 24th. The software maker reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $5.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.30 billion. SAP had a net margin of 18.00% and a return on equity of 18.33%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.73 earnings per share. equities analysts anticipate that SAP SE will post 4.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The firm also recently declared an annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 21st will be given a $1.7271 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 18th. This is a positive change from SAP’s previous annual dividend of $1.33. This represents a dividend yield of 1.6%. SAP’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.74%.

SAP Profile

SAP SE operates as an enterprise application software, and analytics and business intelligence company worldwide. It offers SAP HANA, which enables businesses to process and analyze live data; SAP Data Hub, a solution that enables businesses to manage data from various sources; SAP Cloud Platform, which enables businesses to connect and integrate applications; SAP BW/4HANA, a data warehouse solution; SAP Leonardo, a system that enables customers to make business sense and opportunity of disruptive technologies; and SAP Analytics Cloud, which leverages the intersection of business intelligence, planning, and predictive analytics.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding SAP? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for SAP SE (NYSE:SAP).

Bayer to Win U.S. Antitrust Nod for Monsanto Deal Next Week

Bayer AG is set to win U.S. antitrust approval for its $66 billion takeover of Monsanto Co. by next week, according to a person familiar with the matter, removing the last major regulatory hurdle to forming the world’s biggest seed and agricultural-chemicals company.

The companies and the Justice Department have negotiated a complex agreement that would resolve the government’s concerns that the merger as initially structured would harm competition, said the person, who asked not to be named because the matter is private. The deal could be announced as soon as Tuesday following months of negotiations.

The German company’s agreement to buy Monsanto, announced two years ago, is one of several deals involving seed and crop-chemical firms around the world. Last year, U.S. and EU regulators approved Dow Chemical Co.’s merger with DuPont Co. and China National Chemical Corp.’s takeover of Syngenta AG. The wave of transactions is set to create three industry behemoths, sparking concern among some farmers about higher prices and less choice.

St. Louis-based Monsanto rose 1.2 percent to $126.90 at 1:46 p.m. in New York.

Representatives for Bayer, Monsanto and the Justice Department declined to comment. The timing of the announcement was reported earlier by MLex. Bayer Chief Executive Officer Werner Baumann said Friday the company expects to close "in the near future."

The settlement is coming together after Justice Department antitrust officials, led by Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim, had raised concerns about Bayer’s plan to sell assets to BASF SE to address competition problems, and wanted to see additional divestitures.

— With assistance by Naomi Kresge

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Analysts Expect Acadia Healthcare Company Inc (ACHC) Will Announce Earnings of $0.70 Per Share

Brokerages forecast that Acadia Healthcare Company Inc (NASDAQ:ACHC) will announce $0.70 earnings per share for the current fiscal quarter, Zacks reports. Seven analysts have issued estimates for Acadia Healthcare’s earnings. The highest EPS estimate is $0.77 and the lowest is $0.68. Acadia Healthcare reported earnings per share of $0.66 in the same quarter last year, which would suggest a positive year over year growth rate of 6.1%. The company is scheduled to announce its next earnings results on Thursday, July 26th.

According to Zacks, analysts expect that Acadia Healthcare will report full year earnings of $2.58 per share for the current year, with EPS estimates ranging from $2.44 to $2.62. For the next year, analysts forecast that the company will report earnings of $2.82 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $2.61 to $3.00. Zacks Investment Research’s earnings per share averages are an average based on a survey of analysts that follow Acadia Healthcare.

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Acadia Healthcare (NASDAQ:ACHC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 1st. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.04. Acadia Healthcare had a net margin of 7.34% and a return on equity of 7.99%. The firm had revenue of $742.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $727.64 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.46 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Zacks Investment Research upgraded shares of Acadia Healthcare from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. ValuEngine lowered shares of Acadia Healthcare from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, April 7th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $45.00 price target (up previously from $40.00) on shares of Acadia Healthcare in a report on Friday, February 23rd. BidaskClub upgraded shares of Acadia Healthcare from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $42.00 price target on shares of Acadia Healthcare and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. The company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $44.50.

In related news, Director Reeve B. Waud sold 200,000 shares of Acadia Healthcare stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.02, for a total value of $7,804,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 10,088 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $393,633.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Randall P. Goldberg sold 960 shares of Acadia Healthcare stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.47, for a total transaction of $36,931.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,942 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $267,058.74. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 401,360 shares of company stock valued at $15,759,096. Insiders own 11.10% of the company’s stock.

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. grew its position in Acadia Healthcare by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 10,125,714 shares of the company’s stock valued at $396,726,000 after purchasing an additional 91,981 shares during the period. Aristotle Capital Management LLC grew its position in Acadia Healthcare by 7.4% in the 1st quarter. Aristotle Capital Management LLC now owns 6,638,790 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,108,000 after purchasing an additional 454,924 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Acadia Healthcare by 41.3% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,031,525 shares of the company’s stock valued at $157,955,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178,151 shares during the period. P2 Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Acadia Healthcare by 14.5% in the 1st quarter. P2 Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,350,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $131,253,000 after purchasing an additional 425,000 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Acadia Healthcare by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,379,499 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,013,000 after purchasing an additional 87,260 shares during the period.

Acadia Healthcare stock traded down $0.25 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $42.01. 736,675 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,160,284. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29. Acadia Healthcare has a 12 month low of $26.92 and a 12 month high of $54.34. The firm has a market cap of $3.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.27, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.64.

Acadia Healthcare Company Profile

Acadia Healthcare Company, Inc develops and operates inpatient psychiatric facilities, residential treatment centers, group homes, substance abuse facilities, and outpatient behavioral healthcare facilities to serve the behavioral health and recovery needs of communities. The company operates acute inpatient psychiatric facilities, which offer evaluation and crisis stabilization of patients with severe psychiatric diagnoses; specialty treatment facilities, including residential recovery facilities, eating disorder facilities, and comprehensive treatment centers that provide continuum care for adults with addictive disorders and co-occurring mental disorders; and residential treatment centers, which treat patients with behavioral disorders in a non-hospital setting, including outdoor programs.

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Why These Auto Parts Stocks Are Seeing a Rising Tide

Advance Auto Parts Inc. (NYSE: AAP) and AutoZone Inc. (NYSE: AZO) each saw shares make a handy gain early on Tuesday. These companies have reported their most recent quarterly results, and while each had somewhat mixed reports, the overall outcome was good enough to give the shares a nice bump.

When Advance Auto Parts released its first-quarter financial results before the markets opened on Tuesday, the company said that it had $2.10 in earnings per share (EPS) on $2.87 billion in revenue. That compared with consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters of $1.97 in EPS on revenue of $2.91 billion. The same period of last year reportedly had EPS of $1.60 and $2.89 billion in revenue.

Total net sales for the first quarter decreased 0.6% from the prior-year period, and comparable store sales decreased 0.8% as well.

As a result of the recently signed Tax Cut and Jobs Act, which lowered the federal tax rate, the company’s effective tax rate in the first quarter was 24.5%, compared to 35.0% in the prior-year first quarter.

Shares of Advance Auto Parts closed trading at $119.15 Monday, with a consensus analyst price target of $119.72 and a 52-week trading range of $78.81 to $143.83. Following the announcement, the stock was up about 2.5% at $122.20 in early trading indications Tuesday.

AutoZone also shared its fiscal third-quarter earnings report before the markets opened on Tuesday. The auto parts retailer posted $13.42 in EPS on $2.66 billion in revenue, while consensus forecast had called for $13.01 in EPS on revenue of $2.72 billion. In the same period of last year, the company said it had EPS of $11.44 and $2.62 billion in revenue.

During the quarter, domestic same same-store increased 0.6%, while total sales increased by 1.6%.�Also in this time, AutoZone opened 26 new stores and relocated two stores in the United States, and it opened four new stores in Mexico.

Bill Rhodes, board chair, president and CEO, commented on the report:

Our ongoing initiatives, which include enhanced inventory availability, further commercial acceleration and new omni-channel selling initiatives, continue to gain traction as we roll them further across our chain.� As we continue to invest in our business, we remain committed to our disciplined approach of increasing operating earnings and cash flow, and utilizing our balance sheet and capital effectively.

Shares of AutoZone closed Monday at $665.09. The consensus price target is $777.00, and the 52-week range is $491.13 to $797.89. Following the announcement, the stock was up 2.4% at $681.00 in early trading indications Tuesday.

ALSO READ: 4 Red-Hot Mega-Retailers Ready for a Big Summer Selling Season

Nordson Delivers as Promised on Acquisition Growth

Nordson Corporation�(NASDAQ:NDSN)�announced solid fiscal second-quarter 2018 results on Monday after the market closed, including an expected decline in organic volume that was more than offset by acquisitive growth.

Thanks to its disappointing forward outlook, shares of the adhesive-dispensing systems specialist are down around 6% in after-hours trading as of this writing -- albeit after a more than 3% gain in Monday's regular session. Let's take a closer look at what Nordson accomplished over the past few months, and what investors should watch for the remainder of the year.

IMAGE SOURCE: NORDSON.

Nordson results: The raw numbers Metric

Fiscal Q2 2018*

Fiscal Q2 2017

Year-Over-Year Growth

Revenue	$553.7 million	$496.1 million	11.6%
GAAP net income	$91.2 million	$64.5 million	41.4%
GAAP earnings per share (diluted)	$1.55	$1.11	39.6%

*FOR THE QUARTER ENDED APRIL 30, 2018. DATA SOURCE: NORDSON CORPORATION.�

What happened with Nordson this quarter? On a non-GAAP basis -- which notably excludes one-time items such as discrete tax adjustments, and $0.16 per share in acquisition costs in last year's fiscal Q2 -- Nordson's earnings increased 15.6% year over year to $1.56 per share -- above most investors' expectations for earnings of $1.43 per share. Nordson's top line included a 1% decline in organic volume, 7% growth related to acquisitions, and a 5% favorable effect from foreign currency translation. These results were roughly in line with Nordson's latest guidance (provided in February), which called for a change in organic volume of down 3% to up 1%, a 7% contribution from acquisitions, and a 5% favorable impact from currencies. Adjusted EBITDA grew 15.4% year over year to $157.5 million. Revenue by segment included: 5.2% growth from Adhesive Dispensing Systems, to $238.8 million, including a 1.7% decline in organic volume and a 6.9% contribution from currencies. 19.4% growth from Advanced Technology Systems, to $250.8 million, including 16.2% organic volume growth and a 3.2% contribution from currencies. 8.5% growth from Industrial Coating Systems, to $64.1 million, including 4.3% organic volume growth and a 4.2% contribution from currencies. Nordson's backlog for the quarter increased 11% year over year to $460 million, including 10% organic volume growth and 1% growth from acquisitions. What management had to say

Nordson CEO Michael Hilton stated:

These results highlight the strategic fit of our recent acquisitions, along with the resilient performance of our base business, particularly against very challenging prior year comparisons where total company organic sales growth was 9�percent in the second quarter. Our global team helped to deliver record second quarter sales, operating profit, diluted earnings per share, and EBITDA. Adjusted EBITDA margin improved about 100 basis points, as compared to the prior year's second quarter adjusted EBITDA margin, to 29 percent of sales.

Looking forward

For the current third quarter of fiscal 2018, Nordson anticipates revenue will arrive in the range of down 3% to up 1% from the same year-ago period. This assumes a change in organic volume of down 6% to down 2%, 1% growth from first-year acquisitions, and a positive 2% contribution from currency exchange. When all is said and done, that should translate to GAAP earnings per diluted share of $1.47 to $1.63.

By comparison -- and though we don't usually pay close attention to Wall Street's demands -- consensus estimates were more optimistic in predicting year-over-year revenue growth of 5.2% and earnings of $1.91 per share.

Still, Hilton once again suggested that investors keep in mind Nordson's fiscal Q3 2018 laps an "exceptionally strong" year-ago quarter in which organic sales growth arrived at 11%.

"Our global team remains committed to delivering the best technology solutions while employing continuous improvement initiatives to drive bottom line results," Hilton elaborated, "and we expect to generate total company organic sales growth in the low single-digits on a full year basis for fiscal 2018."

All things considered, this was indeed a strong showing that shows Nordson's core business is on solid ground. But while Nordson is certainly up against a tough comparable next quarter, it's obvious investors wanted more.