Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos has revealed plans to sell 25 million shares of Amazon stock worth $5 billion as the company’s stock price hits an all-time high.
Bezos has sold about $8.5 billion worth of stock in nine trading days this February, which is the first time since 2021 that Bezos has reduced his Amazon stock. After the sale, Bezos will still own about 912 million Amazon shares, or about 8.8 percent of the company’s stock.
Bezos is currently the world’s second-richest person, with a net worth of $221.6 billion. In addition to Amazon, he owns space exploration company Blue Origin and the Washington Post.
Amazon shares closed at $200 on Tuesday, the highest level since its 1997 IPO. Amazon shares have soared 32 percent so far this year on expectations that growth in generative artificial intelligence technology will benefit the company’s cloud-computing business.
Bezos, 60, announced in November that he would move from the Seattle area to Miami. Washington state has implemented a 7 percent capital gains tax in 2022, while Florida does not, meaning Bezos’ move could save him hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes.
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