Jeff Bezos sells Amazon shares worth $2.2 billion in latest stock sale

Amazon founder and former CEO Jeff Bezos has made headlines once again as he unloaded another 12 million shares of the company, bringing the total value of shares unloaded by him to a staggering $6 billion. In the latest round of stock dump, Bezos sold Amazon shares worth $2 billion (₹16,604 crore).

The latest tranche of shares was sold by Bezos on Tuesday and Wednesday, according to a filing. This move is part of an already disclosed plan to dispose of as many as 50 million shares of the company he founded.

While Bezos hasn’t explained the reason behind these massive stock sales, the timing of when he instituted the trading plan may provide a clue. He announced his move to Miami from the Seattle region on November 2 and adopted a so-called 10(b)5-1 plan on November 8, likely saving him about $430 million in taxes due to Florida’s lack of a capital gains tax, unlike Washington state.

This significant stake sale is the biggest and only one done by Jeff Bezos since 2021, when he stepped down from his position as Amazon CEO. He also decided to donate around $240 million worth of Amazon shares last year.

The stock sales come amid a surge in Amazon’s stock price, which has seen a jump of 73 percent since 2023. The company achieved a sales turnover of $170 billion and a net profit of $10.6 billion, driven by faster deliveries and a successful holiday season. However, earlier this week, Amazon got dethroned as the fourth most valued company by Nvidia, which saw a major spike in share price and market cap.

Bezos’ move to Florida and the significant stock sales have raised questions about his future plans and the reasons behind these decisions. For now, the Amazon founder has not yet revealed the full plan behind the stock dump, leaving investors and experts speculating about the implications of these actions.

The reasons for Bezos’ stock sales and the future implications for Amazon remain unclear, but the impact on the tech giant’s stock price and its position in the market are being closely monitored by investors and industry experts alike.