Hormel Foods names President John Ghingo CEO, effective October 26, 2026
Hormel's board appointed John F. Ghingo, the company's current President and a board member, as President and Chief Executive Officer, effective October 26, 2026. Interim CEO Jeffrey M. Ettinger's service ends October 25, 2026, and he will remain on the board. The filing also sets Ghingo's new base salary at $1.28 million and a long-term incentive target of $6.8 million, which shareholders may watch as the company's leadership transition takes effect.
Key points
- John F. Ghingo, age 53, appointed President and CEO effective October 26, 2026; he will also remain a board member.
- Jeffrey M. Ettinger's interim CEO service concludes October 25, 2026; he will continue as a board member.
- Ghingo's initial annual base salary is $1.28 million, with a short-term incentive target of 150% of base salary.
- Long-term incentive target of $6.8 million per year, with about 50% in performance-based cash, 25% in stock options and 25% in restricted stock units.
The filing
Written by AI (Anthropic Claude, claude-haiku-5-5) on Nov 8, 2026, 1:12 AM ET, from the text of the filing and its press-release exhibits only. Written later: this filing was briefed after the fact, when past filings were added to the site, so the brief may be read with hindsight; the filing itself is the record of what was known on July 28, 2026.
Briefs are written by AI from the filing text (each brief's own page names the model) and can contain mistakes — open the filing before acting on anything. Impact (1-5) and tone are the model's reading of the filing for shareholders, not a price forecast. Not investment advice.