Thompson Patrick Ryan 4

What Happened
Patrick Ryan Thompson, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of MediaAlpha, had 12,130 shares withheld on February 15, 2026 to satisfy tax withholding obligations tied to vested restricted stock units (RSUs). The withholding occurred in three tranches (4,069; 2,904; and 5,157 shares) at a reported per-share value of $7.17, totaling $86,973. These shares were “disposed” on the Form 4 solely for tax withholding — not sold in an open-market transaction.

Key Details

• Transaction date: 2026-02-15; filing date: 2026-02-17 (filed within the typical two-business-day window).
• Price per share reported: $7.17. Total shares withheld: 12,130; total value: $86,973.
• Footnote: F1 — shares were automatically withheld by the issuer to cover required tax withholding on previously reported RSUs (Class A Common Stock).
• Shares owned after the transaction: not disclosed in the provided excerpt.
• Transaction code: F (tax withholding) — routine administrative disposition, not a purchase or market sale.

Context
This was a routine tax-withholding event at RSU settlement (sometimes called a “share-surrender” or “net share settlement”), which does not indicate a direct buy or sell decision by the insider. For retail investors, purchases by insiders are typically more informative about sentiment; tax withholdings are standard and should not be interpreted as a bearish or bullish signal.