Amazon Inc AMZN CEO Jeff Bezos has offloaded $3 billion worth of the e-commerce company's shares this week, according to filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday.
What Happened: Bezos’s beneficial ownership filings show that a total of one million common stock shares were sold on Monday and Tuesday. The transactions were part of Amazon’s 10b5-1 trading plan — a strategy that allows company insiders to sell stocks at preset parameters.
With the recent sale, Bezos has sold off more than $10 billion worth of Amazon shares this year, but still holds over 10% stake in the tech company.
In August, the billionaire entrepreneur and investor sold off $3 billion worth of shares in the price range of $3,102.85 and 3,183.26. Bezos had earlier sold shares worth about $4.1 billion between January and February.
Why Does It Matter: Bezos, in 2018, disclosed that he sells about $1 billion worth of Amazon shares annually to fund Blue Origin LLC — the aerospace equipment manufacturing company he founded in 2000.
In 2019, Bezos had sold Amazon common stock worth around $2.8 billion.
Benzinga's Take: Bezos isn't selling his shares on the open market, and 10b5-1 sales like these are common for the Amazon CEO to fund other ventures of his interests, including Blue Origin and philanthropic work. This event doesn't necessarily reflect Bezos's views on Amazon's future stock performance.
Price Action: AMZN closed 6.32% higher at $3,241.16.
Photo courtesy of Seattle City Council via Flickr
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