Bezos plans to sell Amazon shares worth $4.8 billion in the next year.
A financial statement issued on Friday, May 2nd, revealed Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, intends to sell up to 25 million shares of the company's stock in the next year as part of a trading plan approved on March 4th. At the current price, the value of this stake is approximately $4.8 billion.
This announcement comes after Amazon reported its financial results for the first quarter, exceeding profit and revenue expectations. However, the operating income forecast for the current quarter fell short of Wall Street's expectations.
The data shows that Amazon is taking preemptive steps amid economic challenges, including new tariffs imposed by former U.S. President Donald Trump.
A previous report sparked controversy by suggesting the company planned to pass on these costs to shoppers, prompting Trump to personally contact Bezos to object. However, Amazon later denied any such plans.
Bezos, who stepped down as Amazon's CEO in 2021 but remains its largest shareholder, previously sold shares worth $13.5 billion last year, in his first sale since 2021.
Since handing over the reins to Andy Jassy, Bezos has dedicated more time to his space company Blue Origin, in addition to his $10 billion climate and biodiversity fund.
He has also used proceeds from Amazon stock sales to fund Blue Origin and the Day One Fund he launched in September 2018 to support education in low-income communities and combat homelessness.
