Institution: U.S. corporate executives are dumping stocks at nearly a record pace

BlockBeats report: On July 17, U.S. corporate executives are selling stocks at the second-fastest pace in more than 20 years. For some investors, this is a typical warning sign, as it suggests that the people most familiar with company operations are taking a cautious stance toward the current market. Based on data from EPFR Global Market Intelligence, in the first half of 2026, U.S. corporate insiders cumulatively sold stocks worth $77.6 billion, up 20% from the same period last year. Over the past 20-plus years, only the selloff in 2021 was larger, when the market was driven by large-scale stimulus funding during the pandemic.

In a report, EPFR analysts including Winston Chua wrote: “Insider trading behavior indicates that, at current valuation levels, corporate executives do not have a strong willingness to increase their stock holdings.” In addition, buying activity by corporate insiders remains sluggish. In the first half of 2026, they only bought corporate stock worth $6.9 billion, slightly above the lowest level in seven years of $6.7 billion recorded in the same period last year. (Jin10)