Are top executives at US companies secretly selling early? This year, they offloaded stocks totaling $77.6 billion, reaching the second-highest level in 20 years; previously it was during the pandemic.

The people who understand a company’s operations best are voting with their actions. According to EPFR Global Market Intelligence data, 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. This is the second-fastest pace of selling in more than 20 years, only behind 2021, when stimulus funds flooded during the pandemic. At the same time, these executives’ buying appetite is at a low point: in the first half of the year, they only bought $6.9 billion, nearly at the seven-year low level.
（Background recap: Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan warn in unison: U.S. stock valuations are too high and could face at least a 10% pullback!）
（Background add-on: Buffett “furiously sold 6 billion” in just two months—what market signal did he send after having once said he would never sell?）

Key takeaways

• According to EPFR data, in the first half of 2026, U.S. corporate insiders sold $77.6 billion, up 20% year over year, the second-fastest in more than 20 years, second only to 2021.
• Insider buying interest is weak: they only bought $6.9 billion in the first half, close to the seven-year low of $6.7 billion last year.
• Over the same period, the amount of corporate share repurchase announcements is approaching $1 trillion; buybacks and executive selling form a stark contrast.

The people who most understand whether a company is worth anything are often not Wall Street analysts, but the senior executives and directors inside. And this group is selling their own shares at a rare pace not seen in more than 20 years. According to EPFR Global Market Intelligence data, in the first half of 2026, U.S. corporate insiders sold stocks worth $77.6 billion in total—20% more than the same period last year.

For some investors, this is a classic warning sign. After all, if the people who know the company’s real operating situation best aren’t interested enough to add to their positions at today’s stock prices, why would outsiders chase the stock higher?

Selling is pushing toward the second-fastest pace in 20 years, only surpassed by 2021

When you extend the timeline, the figure is even more worth pondering. Over the past 20+ years, the only time insider selling exceeded the level of this year’s first half was in 2021—and at that time, the backdrop was that during the pandemic, large-scale stimulus funds pushed the whole market higher, and everyone cashed out near the highs. Today, without anything like that flood of capital, selling is still approaching the volume seen back then.

EPFR analysts, including Winston Chua, spell it out plainly in their report.

Insider trading activity shows that at current valuation levels, corporate executives do not have a strong incentive to increase their holdings.

Even more revealing is the other side of the scale. Insider buying activity remains sluggish. In the first half of 2026, they only bought $6.9 billion worth of their own company stock, just slightly above the seven-year low of $6.7 billion from the same period last year. They are selling hard and buying little—the direction is one-sided.

Buybacks on one side, “running away” on the other

Pull the camera back further and you’ll see an even more contradictory picture. While insiders are accelerating cashing out, these companies themselves are aggressively buying back their own shares. In the first half of 2026, the total announced value of U.S. corporate share repurchases is approaching $1 trillion, with nearly half coming from the technology sector.

Common questions

Why is insider selling seen as a warning signal?

Corporate executives and directors know the company’s actual operating situation best. When this group sells at the second-fastest pace in more than 20 years and their buying interest hits a seven-year low, some investors interpret it as them believing current stock prices are too high, leading them to grow more cautious about the outlook.

How does this round of selling compare with history?

According to EPFR data, in the first half of 2026, U.S. insiders sold a total of $77.6 billion, up 20% year over year—making it the second-highest in more than 20 years, only behind the record set in 2021, when pandemic stimulus funds drove the rally.