Companies CITIZENS, INC.
CITIZENS (CIA): executive pay, fiscal 2025
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CEO pay, last three years
- $1,435,264FY2024
- $1,487,735FY2025
CEO total pay was $1,487,735 in fiscal 2025, up from $1,435,264 in fiscal 2024.
FY2025: salary $500,000 · bonus $0 · stock awards $450,000 · option awards $0
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Executives and directors
Full detail
Every table from the filing. Open any section.
Summary compensation table
| Named executive officer | Salary | Bonus | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension / NQDC | All other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jon Stenberg | $500,000 | $0 | $450,000 | $0 | $460,000 | $0 | $77,735 | $1,487,735 |
| Chief Executive Officer and President | ||||||||
| Jeffery Conklin | 442,900 | 0 | 200,000 | 0 | 195,500 | 0 | 11,273 | 849,673 |
| Chief Financial Officer, Chief Investment Officer and Treasurer | ||||||||
| Sheryl Kinlaw | 360,500 | 0 | 175,000 | 0 | 172,500 | 0 | 13,200 | 721,200 |
| Chief Legal Officer and Secretary | ||||||||
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column; 0 means it reported zero. Figures are as printed in the filing, without adjustment.
Three-year trend — total compensation per named executive
| Named executive officer | FY2025 total | FY2024 total | FY2023 total | Δ FY2024→2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jon Stenberg | $1,487,735 | $1,435,264 | — | ↑ +52,471 |
| Jeffery Conklin | 849,673 | 896,281 | 644,465 | ↓ −46,608 |
| Sheryl Kinlaw | 721,200 | 788,108 | 556,606 | ↓ −66,908 |
Prior-year totals as disclosed in the corresponding proxy; deltas are computed values with the derivation shown in the register.
Incentive-plan design — the Compensation Discussion & Analysis
Align executive short-term and long-term bonus opportunities with Company performance and set quantifiable performance objectives that incentivize executives to drive revenue and improve profitability.
| CEO STI target (% of salary) | — |
|---|---|
| CEO LTI target (% of salary) | — |
| Independent consultant | Meridian |
| Clawback policy | true |
| Anti-hedging | true |
| Anti-pledging | true |
Equity grants and outstanding awards
No plan-based awards are on file for this fiscal year.
Outstanding equity awards at fiscal year-end 2025
| Executive | Award | Shares unvested | Exercise price | Market value unvested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sheryl Kinlaw | RSU | 8,536 | — | $41,229 |
| Jeffery Conklin | RSU | 9,668 | — | 46,696 |
| Sheryl Kinlaw | PSU | 11,538 | — | 55,729 |
| Jeffery Conklin | PSU | 13,187 | — | 63,693 |
| Sheryl Kinlaw | RSU | 15,384 | — | 74,305 |
| Jeffery Conklin | RSU | 17,582 | — | 84,921 |
| Sheryl Kinlaw | PSU | 24,533 | — | 118,494 |
| Jeffery Conklin | PSU | 28,037 | — | 135,419 |
| Jon Stenberg | PSU | 29,670 | — | 143,306 |
| Jon Stenberg | RSU | 39,560 | — | 191,075 |
| Jon Stenberg | RSU | 40,619 | — | 196,190 |
| Jon Stenberg | PSU | 45,696 | — | 220,712 |
| Jeffery Conklin | RSU | 49,901 | — | 241,022 |
| Sheryl Kinlaw | RSU | 52,153 | — | 251,899 |
| Jon Stenberg | RSU | 90,498 | — | 437,105 |
Director compensation
| Director | Cash fees | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | All other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cynthia H. DavisIndependent · Nominating and Corporate Governance (Chair) · Compensation | $115,000 | $40,000 | — | — | — | $155,000 |
| Jerry D. Davis JrIndependent · Compensation · Investment | 115,000 | 40,000 | — | — | — | 155,000 |
| Dr. Terry S. ManessIndependent · Audit | 115,000 | 40,000 | — | — | — | 155,000 |
| Christopher W. ClausIndependent · Investment · Compensation (Chair) | 115,000 | 40,000 | — | — | — | 155,000 |
| J. Keith MorganIndependent · Investment · Nominating and Corporate Governance | 105,000 | 40,000 | — | — | — | 145,000 |
| Mary TaylorIndependent · Audit · Nominating and Corporate Governance · Compensation | 105,000 | 40,000 | — | — | — | 145,000 |
| Peter M. CarlsonIndependent · Audit · Compensation | 56,875 | 40,000 | — | — | — | 96,875 |
| Gerald W. ShieldsIndependent | 33,542 | 0 | — | — | — | 33,542 |
| Michael HarwoodIndependent | 16,188 | 0 | — | — | — | 16,188 |
| Jon StenbergEmployee director | — | — | — | — | — | 0 |
Board fee structure and ownership guideline
| Annual cash retainer | $105,000 |
|---|---|
| Annual equity retainer | $40,000 |
| Per board meeting fee | — |
| Committee chair fees (audit / comp / nom-gov) | — |
| Stock ownership guideline | We implemented Stock Ownership Guidelines for our directors, CEO and other Section 16 officers. |
Total cost of the board
| Component | FY2025 |
|---|---|
| Cash retainers and fees | $776,605 |
| Equity awards (grant-date value) | $280,000 |
| All other compensation | $0 |
| Total cost of the board | $1,056,605 |
Computed as the sum of the director compensation table rows above; inputs and formula shown in the register.
Peer group, and who names CITIZENS as a peer
Companies that benchmark against CIA
No companies currently name CIA as a compensation peer in their most recent disclosure.
This is the complete answer, not a partial one — the list is never padded.
Disclosed peer group — fiscal year 2025
The compensation peer group as the company disclosed it in its own proxy — the reference set behind the percentile above.
Peer reciprocity
Of the companies CITIZENS, INC. names as compensation peers, which name it back in their own disclosed peer groups. A peer set the market reciprocates reads differently from one selected in a single direction.
Reciprocity shown where the peer’s own current proxy has been read — each mark is cited in the register to that peer’s filing. A dash means the peer’s current proxy was read and names no reciprocal group including CITIZENS, INC..
Chief executive pay against the peer group
Most recent fiscal-year chief executive compensation at each disclosed peer, taken from that company’s own proxy statement.
| Rank | Company | FY | Chief executive | Salary | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Palomar Holdings, Inc. | 2025 | Mac Armstrong | $1,243,269 | $3,862,330 | $0 | $3,843,298 | $8,961,148 |
| 2 | HCI Group, Inc. | 2025 | Paresh Patel | 950,000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8,236,000 |
| 3 | Stewart Information Services Corporation | 2025 | Frederick Eppinger | 1,100,000 | 4,399,910 | 0 | 2,206,174 | 7,865,929 |
| 4 | Medallion Financial Corp. | 2025 | Andrew Murstein | 1,084,164 | 2,400,000 | 0 | 2,141,577 | 5,716,187 |
| 5 | Consumer Portfolio Services, Inc. | 2025 | Charles Bradley | 995,000 | 0 | 1,139,790 | 3,283,500 | 5,439,647 |
| 6 | Heritage Insurance Holdings, Inc. | 2025 | Ernie Garateix | 875,500 | 2,757,824 | 0 | 1,663,450 | 5,341,897 |
| 7 | Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. | 2025 | Stephen Donaghy | 1,000,000 | 1,750,014 | 0 | 2,406,844 | 5,240,829 |
| 8 | PRA Group, Inc. | 2025 | Martin Sjolund | 746,829 | 3,312,393 | 0 | 827,781 | 4,938,095 |
| 9 | Regional Management Corp. | 2025 | Robert Beck | 680,000 | 2,999,995 | 0 | 1,021,020 | 4,824,409 |
| 10 | Safety Insurance Group, Inc. | 2025 | George Murphy | 850,000 | 1,100,000 | 0 | 1,476,880 | 4,187,838 |
| 11 | Global Indemnity Group, LLC | 2025 | Joseph Brown | 1,000,000 | — | 494,500 | 0 | 4,001,790 |
| 12 | World Acceptance Corporation | 2026 | J. Tobin Turner | 364,662 | 2,564,635 | 0 | 0 | 2,961,396 |
| 13 | American Coastal Insurance Corporation | 2025 | B. Bradford Martz | 681,042 | 787,500 | 262,500 | 945,000 | 2,811,555 |
| 14 | AMERISAFE, Inc. | 2025 | G. Janelle Frost | 803,146 | 896,500 | 0 | 622,090 | 2,369,553 |
| 15 | Atlantic American Corporation | 2025 | Hilton Howell Jr. | 600,000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1,615,566 |
| 16 | CITIZENS, INC. | 2025 | Jon Stenberg | 500,000 | 450,000 | 0 | 460,000 | 1,487,735 |
| 17 | NI Holdings, Inc. | 2025 | Cindy Launer | 167,614 | 187,493 | 0 | 240,000 | 712,516 |
Each peer’s compensation is from its most recently filed proxy; fiscal years differ by company. Each peer’s figures come from its own filings; the subject company is highlighted. Peers whose chief executive compensation is outside our coverage universe are stated as such, never left blank.
Incentive design against the same peers
| Company | Annual incentive payout | Long-term vehicle mix | PSU measures include TSR | Compensation consultant |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CITIZENS, INC. | not disclosed | PSU 60 · RSU 40 | not disclosed | Meridian |
| American Coastal Insurance Corporation | not disclosed | not disclosed | No | Pay Governance LLC |
| AMERISAFE, Inc. | 95% | PSU 70 · RSU 30 | No | AON |
| Atlantic American Corporation | not disclosed | not disclosed | not disclosed | not disclosed |
| Consumer Portfolio Services, Inc. | not disclosed | Option 100 | not disclosed | not disclosed |
| Global Indemnity Group, LLC | not disclosed | not disclosed | No | not disclosed |
| HCI Group, Inc. | not disclosed | RSU 100 | not disclosed | not disclosed |
| Heritage Insurance Holdings, Inc. | 158% | PSU 62 · RSU 38 | No | not disclosed |
| Medallion Financial Corp. | not disclosed | RSU 50 · PSU 50 | No | Meridian Compensation Partners, LLC |
| NI Holdings, Inc. | not disclosed | RSU 100 | not disclosed | Meridian |
| Palomar Holdings, Inc. | 176% | PSU 50 · RSU 50 | No | Pay Governance |
| PRA Group, Inc. | not disclosed | PSU 50 · RSU 50 | Yes — Relative TSR | Pearl Meyer |
| Regional Management Corp. | 100.1% | PSU 50 · RSU 50 | Yes — relative TSR | Frederic W. Cook & Co., Inc. (FW Cook) |
| Safety Insurance Group, Inc. | 139% | PRSU 55 · RSU 45 | No | Pay Governance |
| Stewart Information Services Corporation | 114.6% | PSU 50 · RSU 50 | No | Mercer (US) LLC |
| Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. | 160.5% | PSU 50 · RSU 50 | No | not disclosed |
| World Acceptance Corporation | not disclosed | not disclosed | No | not disclosed |
Read from each company’s Compensation Discussion and Analysis: annual incentive payout as a percentage of target, the disclosed long-term vehicle mix, whether performance-share measures include a total shareholder return component, and the retained compensation consultant. “Not disclosed” appears only where the company’s filing does not state the item.
Say-on-pay history and pay ratio
| Meeting year | Meeting date | For | Against | Abstain | Support | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2026-06-16 | 8,766,665 | 83,841 | 37,327 | 99.05% | Passed |
| 2025 | 2025-06-17 | 2,796,164 | 465,160 | 216,599 | 85.74% | Passed |
| 2024 | 2024-06-18 | 4,983,332 | 514,843 | 39,363 | 90.64% | Passed |
| 2022 | 2022-06-07 | 7,249,687 | 149,620 | 34,379 | 97.98% | Passed |
| 2021 | 2021-06-01 | 5,399,142 | 1,667,283 | 36,459 | 76.41% | Passed |
| 2020 | 2020-06-02 | 3,043,036 | 3,755,408 | 697,752 | 44.76% | Failed |
Rows are labeled by annual-meeting year, with the meeting date beside each; the vote held in a given year acts on the prior fiscal year’s compensation.
Say-on-pay — history, company’s computation
| Meeting year | Meeting date | Approval — company’s computation |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2026-06-16 | 99.05%a |
| 2025 | 2025-06-17 | 85.74%b |
| 2024 | 2024-06-18 | 90.64%c |
a. Voting standard not stated in the filing.
b. Voting standard not stated in the filing.
c. Approved under the standard stated in the filing — “Advisory Vote to Approve Executive Compensation -- Majority of Votes Cast | Abstentions: For these votes, abstentions and broker non-votes will be disregarded and will have no impact on the vote.”.
Approval percentages are the company’s own reported computations under its own stated standard, not recomputed by Velarion. Where a company does not state a standard, none is assumed.
CEO pay ratio
| Ratio (CEO : median employee) | 24 : 1 |
|---|---|
| CEO total compensation | — |
| Median employee compensation | $60,036 |
Insider trades since the proxy
No insider equity transactions reported since the proxy statement.
Sources (48 citations)
Each figure is listed with the filing it comes from, where it appears in that filing, and the value as printed. Any figure can be independently confirmed against the source.
- Section 01, Jon Stenberg. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. Section “Compensation Tables” · page 38. As printed: 1,487,735. View filing ↗
- Section 01, Jeffery Conklin. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. Section “Compensation Tables” · page 38. As printed: 849,673. View filing ↗
- Section 01, Sheryl Kinlaw. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. Section “Compensation Tables” · page 38. As printed: 721,200. View filing ↗
- Section 07, pay ratio. DEF 14A, filed 2022-04-25. Section “CEO Pay Ratio”. As printed: 24 : 1. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Cynthia H. Davis. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 155,000. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Jerry D. Davis Jr. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 155,000. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Dr. Terry S. Maness. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 155,000. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Christopher W. Claus. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 155,000. View filing ↗
- Section 08, J. Keith Morgan. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 145,000. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Mary Taylor. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 145,000. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Peter M. Carlson. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 96,875. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Gerald W. Shields. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 33,542. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Michael Harwood. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 16,188. View filing ↗
- Section 08, Jon Stenberg. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. View filing ↗
- Section 06, 2026 vote. Form 8-K, filed 2026-06-18. Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 99.05% (votes for as printed: 8,766,665). View filing ↗
- Section 06, 2025 vote. Form 8-K, filed 2025-06-20. Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 85.74% (votes for as printed: 2,796,164 80%). View filing ↗
- Section 06, 2024 vote. Form 8-K, filed 2024-06-20. Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 90.64% (votes for as printed: 4,983,332). View filing ↗
- Section 01 trend, Δ column (computed). Computed. Δ = current-FY total − prior-FY total per named officer.
- Section 09b board cost (computed). Computed. Cash 776,605 + equity 280,000 + all other 0 = 1,056,605, summed across the director compensation table rows.
- Palomar Holdings, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-10. CEO total compensation as printed in Palomar Holdings, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 8,961,148. View filing ↗
- HCI Group, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-29. CEO total compensation as printed in HCI Group, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 8,236,000. View filing ↗
- Stewart Information Services Corporation, Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-03-25. CEO total compensation as printed in Stewart Information Services Corporation's own proxy. As printed: 7,865,929. View filing ↗
- Medallion Financial Corp., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. CEO total compensation as printed in Medallion Financial Corp.'s own proxy. As printed: 5,716,187. View filing ↗
- Consumer Portfolio Services, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-09-30. CEO total compensation as printed in Consumer Portfolio Services, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 5,439,647. View filing ↗
- Heritage Insurance Holdings, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. CEO total compensation as printed in Heritage Insurance Holdings, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 5,341,897. View filing ↗
- Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. CEO total compensation as printed in Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 5,240,829. View filing ↗
- PRA Group, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. CEO total compensation as printed in PRA Group, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 4,938,095. View filing ↗
- Regional Management Corp., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-09. CEO total compensation as printed in Regional Management Corp.'s own proxy. As printed: 4,824,409. View filing ↗
- Safety Insurance Group, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-03-31. CEO total compensation as printed in Safety Insurance Group, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 4,187,838. View filing ↗
- Global Indemnity Group, LLC, Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-29. CEO total compensation as printed in Global Indemnity Group, LLC's own proxy. As printed: 4,001,790. View filing ↗
- World Acceptance Corporation, Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-07-22. CEO total compensation as printed in World Acceptance Corporation's own proxy. As printed: 2,961,396. View filing ↗
- American Coastal Insurance Corporation, Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-01. CEO total compensation as printed in American Coastal Insurance Corporation's own proxy. As printed: 2,811,555. View filing ↗
- AMERISAFE, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-24. CEO total compensation as printed in AMERISAFE, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 2,369,553. View filing ↗
- Atlantic American Corporation, Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-10-23. CEO total compensation as printed in Atlantic American Corporation's own proxy. As printed: 1,615,566. View filing ↗
- CITIZENS, INC. (subject), Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-30. CEO total compensation as printed in CITIZENS, INC.'s own proxy. As printed: 1,487,735. View filing ↗
- NI Holdings, Inc., Section 10b CEO total. DEF 14A, filed 2026-04-08. CEO total compensation as printed in NI Holdings, Inc.'s own proxy. As printed: 712,516. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, AMERISAFE, Inc. reciprocity. DEF 14A. AMERISAFE, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include CITIZENS, INC.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, Global Indemnity Group, LLC reciprocity. DEF 14A. Global Indemnity Group, LLC's most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include CITIZENS, INC.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, PRA Group, Inc. reciprocity. DEF 14A. PRA Group, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include CITIZENS, INC.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, Heritage Insurance Holdings, Inc. reciprocity. DEF 14A. Heritage Insurance Holdings, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include CITIZENS, INC.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, NI Holdings, Inc. reciprocity. DEF 14A. NI Holdings, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include CITIZENS, INC.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, American Coastal Insurance Corporation reciprocity. DEF 14A. American Coastal Insurance Corporation's most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include CITIZENS, INC.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, HCI Group, Inc. reciprocity. DEF 14A. HCI Group, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include CITIZENS, INC.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, Stewart Information Services Corporation reciprocity. DEF 14A. Stewart Information Services Corporation's most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include CITIZENS, INC.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, Regional Management Corp. reciprocity. DEF 14A. Regional Management Corp.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include CITIZENS, INC.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, Safety Insurance Group, Inc. reciprocity. DEF 14A. Safety Insurance Group, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include CITIZENS, INC.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, Medallion Financial Corp. reciprocity. DEF 14A. Medallion Financial Corp.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include CITIZENS, INC.. View filing ↗
- Section 10a, Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc. reciprocity. DEF 14A. Universal Insurance Holdings, Inc.'s most recent proxy was read; its disclosed peer group does not include CITIZENS, INC.. View filing ↗