Document:

Exhibit 10.1

 

COOPERATION AGREEMENT

 

This Cooperation Agreement
(this “Agreement”), dated as of February 21, 2021, is by and among Elliott Investment Management L.P., a Delaware
limited partnership, Elliott Associates, L.P., a Delaware limited partnership, and Elliott International, L.P., a Cayman Islands
limited partnership (each, an “Elliott Party,” and together, the “Elliott Parties”), and
Principal Financial Group, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”).

 

WHEREAS, the Company
and the Elliott Parties have engaged in certain discussions concerning the Company;

 

WHEREAS, the Company
and the Elliott Parties desire to enter into an agreement regarding the appointment of certain new independent directors selected
in accordance with the terms hereof to the Board of Directors of the Company (the “Board”) and certain other
matters, in each case, on the terms and subject to the conditions set forth therein; and

 

WHEREAS, concurrently
with the execution of this Agreement, the Elliott Parties and the Company are entering into an information sharing agreement to
enable the Company to share confidential information with the Elliott Parties regarding an investor day, scheduled to occur on
or before June 30, 2021 (the “Investor Day”).

 

NOW, THEREFORE, in
consideration of and reliance upon the mutual covenants and agreements contained herein, and for other good and valuable consideration,
the receipt and sufficiency of which is hereby acknowledged, the Elliott Parties and the Company agree as follows:

 

1.                 
Board of Directors.

 

(a)          
New Independent Director. Within two (2) business
days (as defined below) following the date hereof, the Board and all applicable committees thereof shall take (or shall have taken)
such actions as are necessary to appoint Mary Elizabeth “Maliz” Beams (the “New
Independent Director”) as a Class I member of the Board with an initial term expiring at the Company’s 2023
Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the “2023 Annual Meeting”).

 

(b)               Additional
New Independent Director. Subject to the following sentence of this Section 1(b), the Company and the Elliott
Parties shall cooperate to identify and mutually agree upon a director candidate having such expertise and skills as shall be
determined by the Nominating and Governance Committee of the Board (the “Nominating and Governance
Committee”) in accordance with and subject to the Company Policies (as defined below), the charter of the
Nominating and Governance Committee and the Company’s policies and procedures of general application to members of the
Board and applicable law (the “Additional New Independent Director”, and together with the New Independent
Director, the “New Directors”), and the Board and all applicable committees thereof shall take (or shall
have taken) such actions as are necessary to appoint the Additional New Independent Director as a Class I member of the Board
with an initial term expiring at the 2023 Annual Meeting not later than September 30, 2021. Prior to the appointment of the
Additional New Independent Director pursuant to this Section 1(b), (i) the Board shall have determined that the Additional
New Independent Director qualifies as Independent and otherwise satisfies the Board membership criteria set forth in the
Company’s Corporate Governance Guidelines (the “Corporate Governance Guidelines”) and in accordance
with the charter of the Nominating and Governance Committee and (ii) the Additional New Independent Director shall have
complied with the conditions set forth in Section 1(f).

 

     

     

    

 

(c)             
New Director Agreements, Arrangements and Understandings.
Each of the Elliott Parties agrees that neither it nor any of its Affiliates (as defined below) (i) has paid or will pay any compensation
to any of the New Directors in connection with such person’s service on the Board or any committee thereof or (ii) has or
will have any agreement, arrangement, or understanding, written or oral, with any of the New Directors regarding such person’s
service on the Board or any committee thereof.

 

(d)              
Replacement New Director. Subject to the following sentence of this Section 1(d), if any New Director is unable or
unwilling to serve as a director, resigns as a director, is removed as a director or ceases to be a director for any other reason
prior to the expiration of the Cooperation Period (as defined below), the Company and the Elliott Parties shall cooperate to identify
and mutually agree upon a substitute Independent director having such expertise and skills as shall be determined by the Nominating
and Governance Committee in accordance with and subject to the Company Policies, the charter of the Nominating and Governance Committee
and the Company’s policies and procedures of general application to members of the Board and applicable law (the “Replacement
New Director”), and the Board and all applicable committees thereof shall take (or shall have taken) such actions as
are necessary to appoint the Replacement New Director to serve as a director of the Company for the remainder of such New Director’s
term. Effective upon the appointment of the Replacement New Director to the Board, such Replacement New Director will be considered
a New Director for all purposes of this Agreement from and after such appointment. Prior to the appointment of the Replacement
New Director pursuant to this Section 1(d), (i) the Board shall have determined that the Replacement New Director qualifies as
Independent and otherwise satisfies the Board membership criteria set forth in the Corporate Governance Guidelines and in accordance
with the charter of the Nominating and Governance Committee and (ii) the Replacement New Director shall have complied with the
conditions set forth in Section 1(f).

 

(e)               Finance
Committee. Upon the appointment of the New Independent Director to the Board pursuant to Section 1(a), the Board
and all applicable committees thereof shall take such actions as are necessary to appoint the New Independent Director to
serve as a member of the Finance Committee of the Board (the “Finance Committee”), and such that, as of
5:00 p.m. Central Time on February 23, 2021, the Finance Committee will include the following directors: the Jonathan S.
Auerbach, Mary Elizabeth “Maliz” Beams, Sandra L. Helton, Roger C. Hochschild, Blair C. Pickerell and Clare S.
Richer, with Clare S. Richer serving as Chairperson of the Finance Committee. Additionally, if the New Independent Director
is unable or unwilling to serve as a member of the Finance Committee, resigns as a member, is removed as a member or ceases
to be a member for any other reason prior to the Investor Day, upon the written request of the Elliott Parties, the Company
and the Elliott Parties shall cooperate to identify and mutually agree upon a director serving on the Board at the time of
such selection (including a Replacement New Director) to serve on the Finance Committee as a replacement for such member (the
 “Replacement Committee Member”). Effective upon the appointment of the Replacement Committee Member to the
Finance Committee, such Replacement Committee Member will be considered the “New Independent Director” solely for
the purposes of the immediately preceding sentence from and after such appointment.

 

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(f)               
New Director Information. The Elliott Parties acknowledge
that, as a condition to the Additional New Independent Director’s appointment to the Board and any subsequent nomination
of each New Director for election as a director at any future Company meeting of stockholders (each, an “Annual Meeting”),
such New Director shall have promptly provided to the Company (i) any consents and information the Company reasonably requests
in connection with such appointment or nomination, including completion of the Company’s standard forms, D&O questionnaires
and other customary onboarding documentation and an executed consent to be named as a nominee in the Company’s proxy statement
and to serve as a director if so elected for the full term for which such New Director is elected at any Annual Meeting, in each
case, as provided by the Company, (ii) information requested by the Company that is required to be disclosed in a proxy statement
or other filing under applicable law, stock exchange rules or listing standards or as may be requested or required by any regulatory
or governmental authority having jurisdiction over the Company or any of its Affiliates, (iii) information reasonably requested
by the Company in connection with assessing eligibility, independence, and other criteria applicable to directors or satisfying
compliance and legal obligations, (iv) such written consents reasonably requested by the Company for the conduct of the Company’s
vetting procedures generally applicable to non-management directors of the Company and the execution of any documents required
by the Company of non-management directors of the Company to assure compliance with the matters referenced in Section 1(g) hereof
and (v) such other information reasonably requested by the Company including (A) an acknowledgment from such New Director that
he or she intends to serve for the full term for which he or she is appointed or elected at any Annual Meeting (including any term
to which he or she would be elected at any Annual Meeting), (B) a completed National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC)
biographical affidavit and such other information as is necessary or appropriate for the Company to prepare biographical information
with respect to such New Director and (C) such information as is necessary or appropriate for the Company or its agents to perform
a background check in the manner generally performed for non-management directors of the Company, including an executed consent
to such background check.

 

(g)             Company
Policies. The parties hereto acknowledge that each New Director, upon election or appointment to the Board, as
applicable, will be governed by the same protections and obligations regarding confidentiality, conflicts of interest,
related person transactions, fiduciary duties, codes of conduct, trading and disclosure policies, director resignation
policy, and other governance guidelines and policies of the Company as other directors of the Company, including the
Organizational Documents (as defined below) and the Corporate Governance Guidelines (collectively, “Company
Policies”), and shall have the same rights and benefits, including with respect to insurance,
indemnification, compensation and fees, as are applicable to all non-management directors of the Company. The Company agrees
and acknowledges that no Company Policy does, and at no time during the Cooperation Period will, prohibit any member of the
Board (including any New Director) from communicating with the Elliott Parties, subject to such director’s observance
of his or her standard confidentiality obligations and fiduciary duties obligations to the Company.

 

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(h)              
Minimum Ownership Requirement. The rights of the Elliott Parties with respect to a Replacement New Director under
Section 1(d) and a Replacement Committee Member under Section 1(e) shall expire at such time as the Elliott Parties cease to have
a “net long position”, or aggregate net long economic exposure to, at least 2.0% of the Common Stock (the “Minimum
Ownership Threshold”). In the event that the Elliott Parties seek to exercise such rights, the Elliott Parties shall
certify in writing to the Company that the Minimum Ownership Threshold is satisfied as of the proposed time of such exercise.

 

(i)                
Board Size. The Company agrees that from the appointment
of the (i) New Independent Director as a member of the Board until the end of the Cooperation Period, the size of the Board shall
be no greater than thirteen (13) members, and (ii) Additional New Independent Director as a member of the Board until the end of
the Cooperation Period, the size of the Board shall be no greater than fourteen (14) members.

 

(j)               
Investor Day Announcement. On or prior to June 30,
2021, the Company shall hold the Investor Day consistent with the Press Release (as defined below). On the date of the Investor
Day, the Company shall announce the results of the review described in the Press Release, which review the Company agrees shall
be overseen by the Finance Committee (the “Review”).

 

(k)           
Termination. The Company’s obligations under
this Section 1 shall terminate upon any material breach of this Agreement (including Section 2) by any Elliott Party upon five
(5) business days’ written notice by the Company to the Elliott Parties if such breach has not been cured within such notice
period, provided that the Company is not in material breach of this Agreement at the time such notice is given or prior to the
end of the notice period.

 

2.                 
Cooperation.

 

(a)               Non-Disparagement.
Each of the Elliott Parties and the Company agrees that, from the date of this Agreement until the date that is 30 calendar
days prior to the notice deadline under the Organizational Documents for the nomination of non-proxy access director
candidates for election to the Board at the Company’s 2022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (such period, the
 “Cooperation Period”), the Company and each Elliott Party shall
refrain from making, and shall cause its respective controlling and controlled (and under common control) Affiliates and its
and their respective principals, directors, members, general partners, officers and employees (collectively, “Covered
Persons”) not to make or cause to be made any statement or announcement that constitutes an ad hominem attack on,
or that otherwise disparages, defames, slanders, impugns or is reasonably likely to damage the reputation of (i) in the case
of any such statements or announcements by any of the Elliott Parties or their Covered Persons: the Company and its
Affiliates or any of its or their respective current or former Covered Persons; and (ii) in the case of any such statements
or announcements by the Company or its Covered Persons: the Elliott Parties and their respective Affiliates or any of their
respective current or former Covered Persons, in each case including (A) in any statement (oral or written), document, or
report filed with, furnished, or otherwise provided to the SEC (as defined below) or any other governmental or regulatory
authority, (B) in any press release or other publicly available format and (C) to any journalist or member of the media
(including in a television, radio, newspaper, or magazine interview or podcast, Internet or social media communication). The
foregoing shall not (x) restrict the ability of any person (as defined below) to comply with any subpoena or other legal
process or respond to a request for information from any governmental or regulatory authority with jurisdiction over the
party from whom information is sought or to enforce such person’s rights hereunder or (y) apply to any private
communications among the Elliott Parties and their Affiliates, Covered Persons and Representatives (in their respective
capacities as such), on the one hand, and among the Company and its Affiliates, Covered Persons and Representatives (in their
respective capacities as such), on the other hand.

 

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(b)              
Voting. During the Cooperation Period, each Elliott
Party will cause all of the Common Stock that such Elliott Party or any of its controlling or controlled (or under common control)
Affiliates has the right to vote (or to direct the vote) as of the applicable record date, to be present in person or by proxy
for quorum purposes and to be voted at any meeting of stockholders of the Company or at any adjournments or postponements thereof,
(i) in favor of each director nominated and recommended by the Board for election at any Annual Meeting or, if applicable, any
other meeting of stockholders of the Company held during the Cooperation Period, (ii) against any stockholder nominations for directors
that are not approved and recommended by the Board for election at any such meeting, (iii) against any proposals or resolutions
to remove any member of the Board, and (iv) in accordance with recommendations by the Board on all other proposals or business
that may be the subject of stockholder action at such meeting; provided, however, that the Elliott Parties and their Affiliates
shall be permitted to vote in their sole discretion on any proposal with respect to an Extraordinary Transaction (as defined below);
provided, further, that in the event that both Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass Lewis & Co. (including any successor
thereto) issues a voting recommendation that differs from the voting recommendation of the Board with respect to any Company-sponsored
proposal submitted to stockholders at a stockholder meeting (other than with respect to the election of directors to the Board,
the removal of directors from the Board, the size of the Board or the filling of vacancies on the Board), the Elliott Parties shall
be permitted to vote in accordance with any such recommendation.

 

(c)              
Standstill. During the Cooperation Period, each Elliott
Party will not, and will cause its controlling and controlled (and under common control) Affiliates and its and their respective
Representatives acting on their behalf (collectively with the Elliott Parties, the “Restricted
Persons”) to not, directly or indirectly, without the prior consent, invitation, or authorization of or by the
Company or the Board, in each case, in writing:

 

(i)           
acquire, or offer or agree to acquire, by purchase or otherwise, or direct any Third Party (as defined below) in the acquisition
of record or beneficial ownership of any Voting Securities (as defined below) or engage in any swap or hedging transactions or
other derivative agreements of any nature with respect to any Voting Securities, in each case, if such acquisition, offer, agreement
or transaction would result in the Elliott Parties (together with their Affiliates) having beneficial ownership of more than 5.0%
of, or aggregate economic exposure of more than 9.9% to, the Common Stock outstanding at such time;

 

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(ii)           
 (A) call or seek to call (publicly or otherwise), alone or in concert with others, a meeting of the Company’s stockholders
(or the setting of a record date therefor), (B) seek, alone or in concert with others, election or appointment to, or representation
on, the Board or nominate or propose the nomination of, or recommend the nomination of, any candidate to the Board, except as expressly
set forth in Section 1, (C) make or be the proponent of any stockholder proposal to the Company or the Board or any committee thereof,
(D) seek, alone or in concert with others (including through any “withhold” or similar campaign), the removal of any
member of the Board or (E) conduct a referendum of stockholders of the Company;

 

(iii)        
make any request for stock list materials or other books and records of the Company or any of its subsidiaries under Section
220 of the Delaware General Corporation Law or any other statutory or regulatory provisions providing for stockholder access to
books and records of the Company or its Affiliates;

 

(iv)        engage
in any “solicitation” (as such term is used in the proxy rules promulgated under the Exchange Act (as defined below))
of proxies with respect to the election or removal of directors of the Company or any other matter or proposal relating to the
Company or become a “participant” (as such term is defined in Instruction 3 to Item 4 of Schedule 14A promulgated
under the Exchange Act) in any such solicitation of proxies;

 

(v)           
make or submit to the Company or any of its Affiliates any proposal for, or offer of (with or without conditions), either
alone or in concert with others, any tender offer, exchange offer, merger, consolidation, acquisition, sale of all or substantially
all assets or sale, spinoff, splitoff or other similar separation of one or more business units relating to the Review, business
combination, recapitalization, restructuring, liquidation, dissolution or similar extraordinary transaction involving the Company
(including its subsidiaries and joint ventures or any of their respective securities or assets) (each, an “Extraordinary
Transaction”) either publicly or in a manner that would reasonably require public disclosure by the Company or
any of the Restricted Persons, in each case, subject to Schedule 2(c)(v) hereto (it being understood that the foregoing shall not
restrict the Restricted Persons from tendering shares, receiving payment for shares or otherwise participating in any Extraordinary
Transaction on the same basis as other stockholders of the Company);

 

(vi)          
make any public proposal with respect to (A) any change in the number, term or identity of directors of the Company or the
filling of any vacancies on the Board other than as provided under Section 1 of this Agreement, (B) any change in the capitalization,
capital allocation policy or dividend policy of the Company or any sale, spinoff, splitoff or other similar separation of one or
more business units relating to the Review, (C) any other change to the Board or the Company’s management or corporate or
governance structure, (D) any waiver, amendment or modification to the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation
or the Company’s Amended and Restated By-Laws (collectively, the “Organizational
Documents”), (E) causing the Common Stock to be delisted from, or to cease to be authorized to be quoted on, any
securities exchange or (F) causing the Common Stock to become eligible for termination of registration pursuant to Section 12(g)(4)
of the Exchange Act;

 

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(vii)         
 knowingly encourage or advise any Third Party or knowingly assist any Third Party in encouraging or advising any other
person with respect to (A) the giving or withholding of any proxy relating to, or other authority to vote, any Voting Securities,
or (B) conducting any type of referendum, relating to the Company (including for the avoidance of doubt with respect to the Company’s
management or the Board) (other than such encouragement or advice that is consistent with the Board’s recommendation in connection
with such matter;

 

(viii)      
form, join or act in concert with any “group” as defined in Section 13(d)(3) of the Exchange Act, with respect
to any Voting Securities, other than solely with Affiliates of the Elliott Parties with respect to Voting Securities now or hereafter
owned by them;

 

(ix)           
enter into a voting trust, arrangement or agreement with respect to any Voting Securities, or subject any Voting Securities
to any voting trust, arrangement or agreement (excluding customary brokerage accounts, margin accounts, prime brokerage accounts
and the like), in each case other than (A) this Agreement (B) solely with Affiliates of the Elliott Parties or (C) granting proxies
in solicitations approved by the Board;

 

(x)          
engage in any short sale or any purchase, sale, or grant of any option, warrant, convertible security, share appreciation
right, or other similar right (including any put or call option or “swap” transaction) with respect to any security
(other than any index fund, exchange traded fund, benchmark fund or broad basket of securities) that includes, relates to, or derives
any significant part of its value from a decline in the market price or value of any of the securities of the Company and would,
in the aggregate or individually, result in the Elliott Parties ceasing to have a “net long position” in the Company;

 

(xi)          
sell, offer, or agree to sell, all or substantially all, directly or indirectly, through swap or hedging transactions or
otherwise, voting rights decoupled from the underlying Common Stock held by a Restricted Person to any Third Party;

 

(xii)         
institute, solicit or join as a party any litigation, arbitration or other proceeding against or involving the Company or
any of its subsidiaries or any of its or their respective current or former directors or officers (including derivative actions);
provided, however, that for the avoidance of doubt, the foregoing shall not prevent any Restricted Person from (A) bringing litigation
against the Company to enforce any provision of this Agreement instituted in accordance with and subject to Section 10, (B) making
counterclaims with respect to any proceeding initiated by, or on behalf of, the Company or its Affiliates against a Restricted
Person, (C) bringing bona fide commercial disputes that do not relate to the subject matter of this Agreement, (D) exercising statutory
appraisal rights or (E) responding to or complying with validly issued legal process;

 

(xiii)        
enter into any negotiations, agreements, arrangements, or understandings (whether written or oral) with any Third Party
to take any action that the Restricted Persons are prohibited from taking pursuant to this Section 2(c); or

 

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(xiv)        
 make any request or submit any proposal to amend or waive the terms of this Agreement (including this subclause), in each
case publicly or which would reasonably be expected to result in a public announcement or disclosure of such request or proposal;

 

provided,
that the restrictions in this Section 2(c) shall terminate automatically upon the earliest of the following: (i) any
material breach of this Agreement by the Company (including, without limitation, a failure to appoint the New Independent
Director and the Additional New Independent Director to the Board and, with respect to the New Independent Director, to the
Finance Committee, in accordance with Section 1, or a failure to issue the Press Release in accordance with Section 3) upon
five (5) business days’ written notice by any of the Elliott Parties to the Company if such breach has not been cured
within such notice period, provided that the Elliott Parties are not in material breach of this Agreement at the time such
notice is given or prior to the end of the notice period; (ii) the Company’s entry into (x) a definitive
written agreement with respect to any Extraordinary Transaction that, if consummated, would result in the acquisition by any
person or group of more than 50% of the Voting Securities or assets having an aggregate value exceeding 50% of the aggregate
enterprise value of the Company (excluding any assets being sold in accordance with the results of the review described in
the Press Release) or (y) one or more definitive written agreements providing for a transaction or series of related
transactions which would in the aggregate result in the Company issuing to one or more Third Parties at least the greater of
(I) 10% of the Common Stock (including on an as-converted basis) outstanding immediately prior to such issuance(s) and (II)
$1.0 billion of such securities (including in a PIPE, convertible note, convertible preferred security or similar structure)
during the Cooperation Period (provided that securities issued as consideration for (or in connection with) the acquisition
of the assets, securities and/or business(es) of another person by the Company or one or more of its subsidiaries shall not
be counted toward this clause (y)); and (iii) the commencement of any tender or exchange offer (by any person or group
other than the Elliott Parties or their Affiliates) which, if consummated, would constitute an Extraordinary Transaction that
would result in the acquisition by any person or group of more than 50% of the Voting Securities, where the Company files
with the SEC a Schedule 14D-9 (or amendment thereto) that does not recommend that its shareholders reject such tender or
exchange offer (it being understood that nothing herein will prevent the Company from issuing a “stop, look and
listen” communication pursuant to Rule 14d-9(f) promulgated under the Exchange Act in response to the commencement of
any tender or exchange offer). Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Agreement, nothing in this Agreement
(including but not limited to the restrictions in this Section 2(c)) will prohibit or restrict any of the Restricted Persons
from (A) making any public or private statement or announcement with respect to any Extraordinary Transaction that is
publicly announced by the Company or a Third Party, (B) making any factual statement to comply with any subpoena or
other legal process or respond to a request for information from any governmental authority with jurisdiction over such
person from whom information is sought (so long as such process or request did not arise as a result of discretionary acts by
any Restricted Person), (C) granting any liens or encumbrances on any claims or interests in favor of a bank or
broker-dealer or prime broker holding such claims or interests in custody or prime brokerage in the ordinary course of
business, which lien or encumbrance is released upon the transfer of such claims or interests in accordance with the terms of
the custody or prime brokerage agreement(s), as applicable, (D) negotiating, evaluating and/or trading, directly or
indirectly, in any index fund, exchange traded fund, benchmark fund or broad basket of securities which may contain or
otherwise reflect the performance of, but not primarily consist of, securities of the Company or (E) providing its views
privately to the Board or the Company’s Chief Executive Officer regarding any matter, or privately requesting a waiver
of any provision of this Agreement, as long as such private communications or requests would not reasonably be expected to
require public disclosure of such communications or requests by the Company or any of the Restricted Persons.

 

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(d)              
Information Sharing Agreement. Concurrently with
execution of this Agreement, the Company is entering into an agreement with the Elliott Parties (the “Information
Sharing Agreement”) to enable the Company, if requested by the Elliott Parties, to disclose certain confidential
information regarding its anticipated communications at the Investor Day with the Elliott Parties.

 

3.                 
Public Announcement. Unless otherwise agreed by the
parties, not later than 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time on February 22, 2021, the Company shall issue a press release in the form attached
to this Agreement as Exhibit A (the “Press Release”). and file with the
SEC a Current Report on Form 8-K (the “Form 8-K”) disclosing its entry into this Agreement and file a copy of
this Agreement and the Press Release as exhibits thereto (provided if the Company is unable to issue the Press Release or file
the Form 8-K for reasons outside of its control, the Company shall issue the Press Release and file the Form 8-K as promptly as
practicable following the execution of this Agreement). The Company shall provide the Elliott Parties and their Representatives
with a copy of such Form 8-K prior to its filing with the SEC and shall consider any timely comments of the Elliott Parties and
their Representatives. Neither of the Company or any of its Affiliates nor the Elliott Parties or any of their Affiliates shall
make any public statement regarding the subject matter of this Agreement, this Agreement or the matters set forth in the Press
Release prior to the issuance of the Press Release without the prior written consent of the other party.

 

4.                 
Withdrawal of Nomination and Other Notices. Effective
upon the date hereof, the Elliott Parties shall irrevocably withdraw, and shall be deemed to have (without any further action by
the Elliott Parties or any other person being required) irrevocably withdrawn, the director nomination intention notice from the
Elliott Parties dated February 19, 2021, and such notice shall be deemed null, void and without effect.

 

5.                  Representations
and Warranties of the Company. The Company represents and warrants to the Elliott Parties as follows: (a) the
Company has the power and authority to execute, deliver, and carry out the terms and provisions of this Agreement and to
consummate the transactions contemplated by this Agreement; (b) this Agreement has been duly and validly authorized,
executed, and delivered by the Company, constitutes a valid and binding obligation and agreement of the Company and, assuming
the valid execution and delivery hereof by each of the other parties hereto, is enforceable against the Company in accordance
with its terms, except as enforcement of this Agreement may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization,
moratorium, fraudulent conveyance, or similar laws generally affecting the rights of creditors and subject to general equity
principles; and (c) the execution, delivery, and performance of this Agreement by the Company does not and will not (i)
violate or conflict with any law, rule, regulation, order, judgment, or decree applicable to the Company, or (ii) result in
any breach or violation of or constitute a default (or an event which with notice or lapse of time or both could constitute a
breach, violation or default) under or pursuant to, or result in the loss of a material benefit under, or give any right of
termination, amendment, acceleration, or cancellation of, any Organizational Documents, agreement, contract, commitment,
understanding, or arrangement to which the Company is a party or by which it is bound.

 

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6.                 
Representations and Warranties of the Elliott Parties.
Each Elliott Party represents and warrants to the Company as follows: (a) such Elliott Party has the power and authority to execute,
deliver, and carry out the terms and provisions of this Agreement and to consummate the transactions contemplated by this Agreement;
(b) this Agreement has been duly and validly authorized, executed, and delivered by such Elliott Party, constitutes a valid and
binding obligation and agreement of such Elliott Party and, assuming the valid execution and delivery hereof by each of the other
parties hereto, is enforceable against such Elliott Party in accordance with its terms, except as enforcement of this Agreement
may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium, fraudulent conveyance, or similar laws generally
affecting the rights of creditors and subject to general equity principles; and (c) the execution, delivery, and performance of
this Agreement by such Elliott Party does not and will not (i) violate or conflict with any law, rule, regulation, order, judgment,
or decree applicable to such Elliott Party, or (ii) result in any breach or violation of or constitute a default (or an event which
with notice or lapse of time or both could constitute a breach, violation or default) under or pursuant to, or result in the loss
of a material benefit under, or give any right of termination, amendment, acceleration, or cancellation of, any organizational
document, agreement, contract, commitment, understanding, or arrangement to which such Elliott Party is a party or by which it
is bound.

 

7.                 
Definitions. For purposes of this Agreement:

 

(a)              
the term “Affiliate” has the meaning set forth in Rule 12b-2 promulgated
by the SEC under the Exchange Act; provided, that none of the Company or its Affiliates or Representatives, on the one hand, and
the Elliott Parties and their Affiliates or Representatives, on the other hand, shall be deemed to be “Affiliates”
with respect to the other for purposes of this Agreement; provided, further, that “Affiliates”
of a person shall not include any entity, solely by reason of the fact that one or more of such person’s employees or principals
serves as a member of its board of directors or similar governing body, unless such person otherwise controls such entity (as the
term “control” is defined in Rule 12b-2 promulgated by the SEC under the Exchange Act); provided, further, that with
respect to the Elliott Parties, “Affiliates” shall not include any portfolio operating company (as such term is understood
in the private equity industry) of any of the Elliott Parties or their Affiliates;

 

(b)               the
terms “beneficial owner” and “beneficially
own” have the same meanings as set forth in Rule 13d-3 promulgated by the SEC under the Exchange Act, except
that a person will also be deemed to be the beneficial owner of all shares of the Company’s authorized share capital
which such person has the right to acquire (whether such right is exercisable immediately or only after the passage of time)
pursuant to the exercise of any rights in connection with any securities or any agreement, arrangement, or understanding
(whether or not in writing), regardless of when such rights may be exercised and whether they are conditional, and all shares
of the Company’s authorized share capital which such person or any of such person’s Affiliates has or shares the
right to vote or dispose;

 

    10 

     

    

 

(c)              
the term “business day” shall mean any day other than a Saturday, a Sunday or a day on which the Federal
Reserve Bank of New York is closed;

 

(d)              
the term “Common Stock” means the Company’s common stock,
par value $0.01 per share;

 

(e)              
the term “Exchange Act” means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated by the SEC thereunder;

 

(f)               
the term “Independent” means that such person (i) shall not (A)
be an employee, officer, director, general partner, manager, advisor or other agent of an Elliott Party or of any Affiliate of
an Elliott Party, (B) be a limited partner, member, or other investor in any Elliott Party or any Affiliate of an Elliott
Party, or (C)  have any agreement, arrangement, or understanding, written or oral, with any Elliott Party or any Affiliate
of an Elliott Party regarding such person’s service as a director of the Company, and (ii) shall qualify as an “independent”
director of the Company under the Company’s Director Independence Standards (as interpreted and determined by the Board),
applicable law and the rules and regulations of the SEC and the Nasdaq Global Select Market;

 

(g)              
the terms “person” or “persons”
shall be interpreted broadly to include any individual, corporation (including not-for-profit), general or limited partnership,
limited liability or unlimited liability company, joint venture, estate, trust, group, association, organization, or other entity
of any kind or nature;

 

(h)              
the term “Representatives” means a party’s directors, members,
general partners, managers, officers, employees, agents, advisors and other representatives;

 

(i)                
the term “SEC” means the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission;

 

(j)                
the term “Third Party” means any person that is not a party to
this Agreement or a controlling or controlled (or under common control) Affiliate thereof, a director or officer of the Company,
or legal counsel to any party to this Agreement; and

 

(k)              
the term “Voting Securities” means the Common Stock and any other
Company securities entitled to vote in the election of directors, or securities convertible into, or exercisable or exchangeable
for, such shares or other securities, whether or not subject to the passage of time or other contingencies; provided that as pertains
to any obligations of the Elliott Parties or any Restricted Persons hereunder (including under Section 2(c)), “Voting Securities”
will not include any securities contained in any index fund, exchange traded fund, benchmark fund or broad basket of securities
which may contain or otherwise reflect the performance of, but not primarily consist of, securities of the Company.

 

    11 

     

    

 

8.                  Notices.
All notices, consents, requests, instructions, approvals, and other communications provided for herein and all legal process
in regard to this Agreement will be in writing and will be deemed validly given, made or served, if (a) given by email, when
such email is sent to the email address(es) set forth below, (b) given by a nationally recognized overnight carrier, one (1)
business day after being sent or (c) if given by any other means, when actually received during normal business hours at the
address specified in this Section 8:

 

if to the Company:

 

Principal Financial Group, Inc.

711 High Street

Des Moines, Iowa 50392

	Attention:	Christopher J. Littlefield, Executive Vice President,

 General Counsel and Secretary
	Email:	littlefield.chris@principal.com

 

with a copy to:

 

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher
 & Flom LLP

One Manhattan West

New York, New York 10001

	Attention:	Todd E. Freed
	 	Richard J. Grossman
	Email:	todd.freed@skadden.com
	 	richard.grossman@skadden.com

 

if to the Elliott Parties:

 

Elliott Investment Management
L.P.

777 South Flager Drive

West Palm Beach, Florida 33401

	Attention:	Mark Cicirelli
	 	Steven Barg
	 	Scott Grinsell
	Email:	mCicirelli@elliottmgmt.com
	 	sbarg@elliottmgmt.com
	 	sgrinsell@elliottmgmt.com

 

with a copy to:

 

Olshan Frome Wolosky LLP

1325 Avenue of the Americas

New York, New York 10019

	Attention:	Steve Wolosky
	 	Kenneth Mantel
	Email:	swolosky@olshanlaw.com
	 	kmantel@olshanlaw.com

 

    12 

     

    

 

At any time, any party hereto
may, by notice given in accordance with this Section 8 to the other party, provide updated information for notices hereunder.

 

9.                 
Expenses. All fees, costs, and expenses incurred
in connection with this Agreement and all matters related to this Agreement will be paid by the party incurring such fees, costs,
or expenses.

 

10.               
Specific Performance; Remedies; Venue; Waiver of Jury Trial.

 

(a)              
The Company and the Elliott Parties acknowledge and agree that irreparable injury to the other party hereto would occur
in the event any of the provisions of this Agreement were not performed in accordance with their specific terms or were otherwise
breached and that such injury would not be adequately compensable by the remedies available at law (including the payment of money
damages). It is accordingly agreed that the Company and the Elliott Parties will each respectively be entitled to an injunction
or injunctions to prevent breaches of this Agreement and to enforce specifically the terms and provisions of this Agreement, in
addition to any other remedy to which they are entitled at law or in equity. FURTHERMORE, THE COMPANY AND EACH ELLIOTT PARTY AGREES:
(1) THE NON-BREACHING PARTY WILL BE ENTITLED TO INJUNCTIVE AND OTHER EQUITABLE RELIEF, WITHOUT PROOF OF ACTUAL DAMAGES; (2) THE
BREACHING PARTY WILL NOT PLEAD IN DEFENSE THERETO THAT THERE WOULD BE AN ADEQUATE REMEDY AT LAW; AND (3) THE BREACHING PARTY AGREES
TO WAIVE ANY BONDING REQUIREMENT UNDER ANY APPLICABLE LAW, IN THE CASE ANY OTHER PARTY SEEKS TO ENFORCE THE TERMS BY WAY OF EQUITABLE
RELIEF. THIS AGREEMENT WILL BE GOVERNED IN ALL RESPECTS, INCLUDING VALIDITY, INTERPRETATION AND EFFECT, BY THE LAWS OF THE STATE
OF DELAWARE WITHOUT GIVING EFFECT TO THE CHOICE OF LAW PRINCIPLES OF SUCH STATE.

 

(b)              
The Company and each Elliott Party (i) irrevocably and unconditionally submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Delaware
Court of Chancery (or, only if the Delaware Court of Chancery declines to accept jurisdiction over a particular matter, the federal,
or other state courts located in Wilmington, Delaware), (ii) agrees that it will not attempt to deny or defeat such jurisdiction
by motion or other request for leave from any such courts, (iii) agrees that any actions or proceedings arising in connection with
this Agreement or the transactions contemplated by this Agreement shall be brought, tried, and determined only in such courts,
(iv) waives any claim of improper venue or any claim that those courts are an inconvenient forum and (v) agrees that it will not
bring any action relating to this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereunder in any court other than the aforesaid courts.
The parties to this Agreement agree that mailing of process or other papers in connection with any such action or proceeding in
the manner provided in Section 8 or in such other manner as may be permitted by applicable law as sufficient service of process,
shall be valid and sufficient service thereof.

 

(c)               Each
of the parties hereto, after consulting or having had the opportunity to consult with counsel, knowingly, voluntarily and
intentionally waives any right that such party may have to a trial by jury in any litigation based upon or arising out of
this Agreement or any related instrument or agreement, or any of the transactions contemplated thereby, or any course of
conduct, dealing, statements (whether oral or written), or actions of any of them. No party hereto shall seek to consolidate,
by counterclaim or otherwise, any action in which a jury trial has been waived with any other action in which a jury trial
cannot be or has not been waived.

 

    13 

     

    

 

11.               
Severability. If at any time subsequent to the date
hereof, any provision of this Agreement is held by any court of competent jurisdiction to be illegal, void, or unenforceable, such
provision will be of no force and effect, but the illegality or unenforceability of such provision will have no effect upon the
legality or enforceability of any other provision of this Agreement.

 

12.              
Termination. This Agreement will terminate upon the
expiration of the Cooperation Period. Upon such termination, this Agreement shall have no further force and effect. Notwithstanding
the foregoing, Sections 7 to 17 shall survive termination of this Agreement, and no termination of this Agreement shall relieve
any party of liability for any breach of this Agreement arising prior to such termination.

 

13.               
Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in one
or more counterparts and by scanned computer image (such as .pdf), each of which will be deemed to be an original copy of this
Agreement.

 

14.              
No Third-Party Beneficiaries. This Agreement is solely
for the benefit of the Company and the Elliott Parties and is not enforceable by any other persons. No party to this Agreement
may assign its rights or delegate its obligations under this Agreement, whether by operation of law or otherwise, without the prior
written consent of the other parties, and any assignment in contravention hereof will be null and void.

 

15.               
No Waiver. No failure or delay by any party in exercising
any right or remedy hereunder will operate as a waiver thereof or of any breach of any other provision hereof, nor will any single
or partial waiver thereof preclude any other or further exercise thereof or the exercise of any other right or remedy hereunder.
The failure of a party to insist upon strict adherence to any term of this Agreement on one or more occasions shall not be considered
a waiver or deprive that party of the right thereafter to insist upon strict adherence to that term or any other term of this Agreement.

 

16.               
Entire Understanding; Amendment. This Agreement (together
with the exhibits and schedules hereto, the Information Sharing Agreement and any other written agreement entered into by the parties
hereto dated as of the date hereof) contains the entire understanding of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof
and supersedes any and all prior and contemporaneous agreements, memoranda, arrangements and understandings, both written and oral,
between the parties, or any of them, with respect to the subject matter of this Agreement. This Agreement may be amended only by
an agreement in writing executed by the Company and the Elliott Parties.

 

    14 

     

    

 

17.               Interpretation
and Construction. The Company and each Elliott Party acknowledges that it has been represented by counsel of its
choice throughout all negotiations that have preceded the execution of this Agreement, and that it has executed the same with
the advice of said counsel. Each party and its counsel cooperated and participated in the drafting and preparation of this
Agreement and the documents referred to herein, and any and all drafts relating thereto exchanged among the parties will be
deemed the work product of all of the parties and may not be construed against any party by reason of its drafting or
preparation. Accordingly, any rule of law or any legal decision that would require interpretation of any ambiguities in this
Agreement against any party that drafted or prepared it is of no application and is hereby expressly waived by the Company
and each Elliott Party, and any controversy over interpretations of this Agreement will be decided without regard to events
of drafting or preparation. Whenever the words “include,” “includes,” or “including” are
used in this Agreement, they shall be deemed to be followed by the words “without limitation.” When a reference
is made in this Agreement to any Section, such reference shall be to a Section of this Agreement, unless otherwise indicated.
The headings contained in this Agreement are for reference purposes only and shall not affect in any way the meaning or
interpretation of this Agreement. The words “hereof,” “herein”, “hereto” and
 “hereunder” and words of similar import when used in this Agreement shall refer to this Agreement as a whole and
not to any particular provision of this Agreement. The word “will” shall be construed to have the same meaning as
the word “shall.” The word “or” is not exclusive. The definitions contained in this Agreement are
applicable to the singular as well as the plural forms of such terms. Any agreement, instrument, law, rule or statute defined
or referred to herein means, unless otherwise indicated, such agreement, instrument, law, rule or statute as from time to
time amended, modified or supplemented.

 

[Signature page follows]

 

    15 

     

    

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, this Agreement
has been duly executed and delivered by the duly authorized signatories of the parties as of the date hereof.

 

	 	ELLIOTT INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT L.P.
	 	 
	 	By:	/s/ Elliot Greenberg
	 	 	Name:	Elliot Greenberg
	 	 	Title:	Vice President
	 	 	 	 
	 	ELLIOTT ASSOCIATES, L.P.
	 	 
	 	
        By:
	

        Elliott Investment Management L.P.,

        

	 	 as attorney-in-fact
	 	 
	 	By:	/s/ Elliot Greenberg
	 		Name:	Elliot Greenberg
	 	 	Title:	Vice President
	 	 	 	 
	 	ELLIOTT INTERNATIONAL, L.P.
	 	 
	 	By:	Hambledon, Inc.,
	 	 	its General Partner
	 	 	 
	 	By:	Elliott Investment Management L.P.,
	 	 	as attorney-in-fact
	 	 	 
	 	By:	/s/ Elliot Greenberg
	 		Name:	Elliot Greenberg
	 	 	Title:	Vice President

 

[Signature Page to Cooperation Agreement]

 

     

     

    

 

	 	PRINCIPAL FINANCIAL GROUP, INC.
	 	 
	 	By: 	/s/ Daniel J. Houston
	 	 	Name:	Daniel J. Houston
	 	 	Title:	Chairman, President and CEO

 

[Signature Page to Cooperation Agreement]dorm-ex43_6.htm

 Exhibit 4.3 

DESCRIPTION OF THE REGISTRANT’S SECURITIES

REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12 OF THE

SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

 

Dorman Products, Inc. has one class of securities registered under Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”): our common stock, par value $.01 per share (the “common stock”). References herein to “we,” “us,” “our company” and “Dorman” refer to Dorman Products, Inc. and not to any of its subsidiaries. 

 

 

DESCRIPTION OF COMMON STOCK

 

The following description of the common stock of Dorman Products, Inc. is a summary and does not purport to be complete. It is subject to and qualified in its entirety by reference to our Amended and Restated Articles of Incorporation, as amended (the “Articles”), and our Amended and Restated By-Laws, as amended (the “By-Laws”), each of which is incorporated by reference as an exhibit to the Annual Report on Form 10-K of which this Exhibit is a part. We encourage you to read our Articles, By-Laws and the applicable provisions of the Pennsylvania Business Corporation Law of 1988, as amended, for additional information. 

 

 

Authorized Capitalization 

 

We are authorized to issue 100,000,000 shares of stock, of which no fewer than 25,000,000 shares, subject to increase by resolution of our board, are to be common stock, par value $.01 per share. As of December 28, 2019, our authorized capital stock consisted of 50,000,000 shares of common stock. The rights, preferences and privileges of the holders of common stock are subject to, and may be adversely affected by, the rights of the holders of shares of any then outstanding preferred stock. As of December 28, 2019, no shares of preferred stock were outstanding. 

 

Dividend Rights 

 

Subject to preferences that may apply to shares of preferred stock outstanding at the time, the holders of our common stock are entitled to receive dividends out of assets legally available at the times and in the amounts as our board may from time to time determine. 

 

Voting Rights 

 

Each holder of record of our common stock is entitled to one vote for each share of our common stock held on all matters submitted to a vote of the shareholders. Except as required by law, our Articles or our By-Laws, matters will generally be decided by a majority of the votes cast at a meeting by the holders of shares entitled to vote thereon. Our Articles establish a majority voting standard in uncontested director elections. Under our Articles, in an uncontested election, each director shall be elected by an affirmative majority of the votes cast. In contested elections (those where the number of nominees exceeds the number of directors to be elected), a plurality vote standard applies. 

 

No Pre-emptive or Other Rights 

 

Holders of common stock are not entitled to pre-emptive, subscription, cumulative voting or conversion rights and there are no redemption or sinking fund provisions applicable to the common stock. 

 

Right to Receive Liquidation Distributions 

 

In the event of our liquidation, dissolution or winding up, holders of our common stock will be entitled to share ratably in all assets remaining after payments to creditors and after satisfaction of the liquidation preference, if any, of the holders of any preferred stock that may at the time be outstanding. 

Anti-Takeover Provisions 

 

Our Articles and By-Laws include the following provisions that may have an effect of delaying, deferring or preventing a change in control of the Company. 

 

Our Articles provide that our board may from time to time issue the authorized and unissued stock which is not common stock in one or more series of preferred stock without shareholder approval. Our board is authorized to adopt resolutions to, among other things, issue shares of preferred stock in one or more series and to fix the voting rights, designations, preferences, qualifications, privileges, limitations, restrictions, options, conversion rights, and other special or relative rights of the shares of any class or series of the preferred stock. As a result, our board could, without shareholder approval, authorize the issuance of preferred stock with voting, dividend, redemption, liquidation, sinking fund, conversion and other rights that could proportionately reduce, minimize or otherwise adversely affect the voting power and other rights of holders of common stock or that could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing a change in control. 

 

In addition, our By-Laws provide that:

	
 
	
•
	
our shareholders are not entitled to call special meetings of the shareholders and the provision in our By- Laws establishing this limitation may not be amended without the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the votes entitled to be cast by shareholders; 

	
 
	
•
	
any action required or permitted to be taken by our shareholders may be effected only at a regular or special meeting of our shareholders and the provision in our By-Laws establishing this limitation may not be amended without the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the votes entitled to be cast by shareholders; 

	
 
	
•
	
certain additional provisions of the By-Laws, such as the provisions governing the size of the board and the filling of board vacancies, may not be amended without the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the votes entitled to be cast by shareholders; and 

	
 
	
•
	
certain provisions of the By-Laws may be amended only by a vote of the shareholders, and not solely by the action of the board. 

 

Our By-Laws also establish procedures for the nomination of directors by shareholders and the proposal by shareholders of matters to be considered at meetings of the shareholders, including the submission of certain information within the time periods prescribed in the By-Laws.

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