Jeff Bezos to sell up to $4.75bn in Amazon stock
3 Min Read
Jeff Bezos plans to sell up to $4.75 billion in Amazon stock by 2026, following strong Q1 earnings and growing political tension over Trump's tariffs.
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Jeff Bezos arrives at the eleventh Breakthrough Prize Ceremony on April 5, 2025, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
Jeff Bezos is preparing to sell up to $4.75 billion worth of Amazon stock over the next year, according to a regulatory filing submitted on Friday. The plan will see Bezos, Amazon’s executive chair and former chief executive, divest as many as 25 million shares by May 29, 2026.
The tranche is valued at $4.75 billion based on Thursday’s closing price and follows his $13.4 billion Amazon stock sale in 2024.
According to Bloomberg’s billionaire index, Bezos remains the world’s second richest individual with an estimated net worth of $212 billion. He ranks just behind Tesla CEO Elon Musk, whose net worth is estimated at $332 billion.
The stock sale announcement came shortly after Amazon reported its first-quarter 2025 earnings, with a 9% year-over-year revenue increase to $155.7 billion and a quarterly profit of $17.1 billion.
Despite these strong figures, Amazon shares declined in after-hours trading due to concerns about the potential impact of new trade tariffs introduced by Trump.
Moreover, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy, during an earnings call with analysts, noted uncertainty over how the tariffs would play out.
“It’s hard to tell with tariffs how they’re going to settle and when they’re going to settle,” he said, emphasizing the importance of maintaining low prices and broad product selection amid rising costs.
Trump tariffs raise market concerns
Following Trump’s announcement of new tariffs in April, particularly targeting Chinese imports, prices on Amazon’s online marketplace began to climb.
The White House recently accused Amazon of taking a "hostile and political act" after a report suggested the company was considering notifying shoppers of the added costs related to the tariffs.
Amazon has since denied moving forward with that plan, clarifying that it had been considered by Amazon Haul, a low-cost shopping platform under its umbrella, but was ultimately scrapped.
Moreover, the evolving relationship between Bezos and Trump has drawn attention.
During Trump’s 2016 campaign, Bezos criticized his rhetoric as harmful to democracy, while Trump accused Amazon of tax avoidance. In contrast, Bezos attended Trump’s inauguration earlier this year and donated $1 million to the event’s fund, suggesting a warming of ties during Trump’s second administration.
Bezos-owned The Washington Post made headlines ahead of the most recent presidential election by choosing not to endorse a candidate, the first time it had done so in over 30 years.
In February, the newspaper’s opinion section was reorganized to align with what Bezos described as a commitment to “personal liberties and free markets.”
