Insider Trading January 26, 2026

Principal Financial Group CEO Executes $742,794 Stock Sale Under 10b5-1 Plan

Transaction follows a quarter that beat EPS expectations and a JPMorgan rating adjustment

By Nina Shah PFG
Principal Financial Group CEO Executes $742,794 Stock Sale Under 10b5-1 Plan
PFG

Deanna D. Strable-Soethout, President and CEO of Principal Financial Group Inc (PFG), sold 8,025 shares on January 22, 2026, under a Rule 10b5-1 plan adopted in February 2024, generating proceeds of $742,794. The company recently reported a third-quarter 2025 adjusted EPS beat and revenue in line with forecasts; JPMorgan subsequently moved its rating from Overweight to Neutral, citing relative value in other life insurers rather than a deterioration in Principal's outlook.

Key Points

  • Principal CEO Deanna D. Strable-Soethout sold 8,025 shares on January 22, 2026, for $742,794, at $92.50 to $92.67 per share.
  • The sale was executed under a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan adopted on February 28, 2024; after the sale, Strable-Soethout retains 54,227 shares indirectly owned by her spouse.
  • Principal reported Q3 2025 adjusted EPS of $2.32 versus $2.21 expected and revenue of $4.14 billion in line with forecasts; JPMorgan downgraded the stock from Overweight to Neutral citing relative value in other life insurers.

Deanna D. Strable-Soethout, who serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of Principal Financial Group Inc (NASDAQ: PFG), disposed of 8,025 shares of the company's common stock on January 22, 2026, according to a Form 4 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The shares were sold at prices between $92.50 and $92.67 per share, producing total gross proceeds of $742,794. The filing notes the trades were carried out pursuant to a Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement that Strable-Soethout established on February 28, 2024. After completing the sale, she retains ownership of 54,227 shares, which the filing indicates are indirectly owned by her spouse.

This insider transaction comes on the heels of Principal Financial Group's reported results for the third quarter of 2025. The company delivered adjusted earnings per share of $2.32, beating analyst expectations of $2.21, while revenue of $4.14 billion came in line with forecasts. The market response to the earnings beat and the company’s optimistic guidance was described in the filing as positive.

In related market coverage, JPMorgan revised its rating on Principal Financial Group's stock from Overweight to Neutral and assigned a price target of $103.00. According to the note, the downgrade was motivated by the firm’s assessment that other life insurance equities offer better value, rather than by a fundamental change to Principal Financial Group’s operating outlook.

The Form 4 disclosure, the recent quarter’s results and the analyst rating change together provide a contemporaneous view of executive trading, company performance and external analyst perspective. The details on the trade - number of shares, price range, plan adoption date and residual holdings - are specified in the SEC filing and are presented here without extrapolation.


Context and next steps

The filing documents the mechanics of the sale and the ongoing holding position. No additional details about future transactions or changes to the 10b5-1 plan were included in the filing.

Risks

  • The filing does not indicate future insider trading intentions or changes to the 10b5-1 plan, creating uncertainty about subsequent executive transactions - impacts corporate governance and investor perception in the financials sector.
  • Analyst action - JPMorgan's downgrade to Neutral based on relative valuation - introduces near-term market sensitivity to sector-level comparisons within life insurance, which could affect PFG stock volatility in the insurance and financials sectors.
  • The available disclosures provide limited forward-looking detail beyond the quarter's results and the single Form 4 filing, leaving unanswered questions about management’s longer-term liquidity or portfolio decisions - relevant to investors focused on shareholder returns in insurance.

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