** Shares of insurer F&G Annuities & Life FG.N fall as much as 8.5%; last down 8.2% at $40.42

** FG late Thursday posted Q4 adjusted profit of $143 million, or $1.12 per share, missing Wall Street expectation of $1.20 per share, according to estimates compiled by LSEG

** Piper Sandler says the earnings miss was driven by shortfall in net investment income, which was impacted by a string of rate cuts

** Meanwhile, Q4 net sales fell to $2.44 billion from $2.55 billion a year earlier

** Brokerage says sales declining for the first time y-o-y since Q2 2023 put shares of the company under pressure

** As of last close, FG stock up 6.2% YTD

(Reporting by Arasu Kannagi Basil in Bengaluru)

((ArasuKannagi.Basil@thomsonreuters.com))