Jeff Bezos plans to sell 15 million Amazon shares worth about $4.1 billion after the company’s stock surged to a record high following stronger-than-expected quarterly results. The sale is being carried out under a prearranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan, a structure commonly used by corporate insiders to avoid concerns about trading on nonpublic information.
Amazon shares slipped more than 2% in early Tuesday trading after the filing became public. The stock had climbed to an all-time high on Monday as investors cheered better-than-expected Q2 earnings, driven by strong growth in Amazon Web Services and rising confidence that the company’s AI investments are delivering tangible results.
The planned transaction values the shares at roughly $4.07 billion based on Monday’s closing price. According to the SEC filing, the stock being sold dates back to Bezos’ founder shares issued in 1994. Despite regularly selling portions of his stake over the years, Bezos remains one of Amazon’s largest shareholders.
Amazon stock has gained about 23% since the start of the year, outperforming the S&P 500’s roughly 11% advance. The filing also disclosed that Bezos donated more than 220,000 Amazon shares to nonprofit organizations in May, continuing his pattern of combining scheduled stock sales with charitable giving.
