Wealthy entrepreneurs suffered losses as Trump's tariffs caused market downturns. Select U.S. tycoons cashed out prior to the tumble.
America's Elite Investors Shed Millions Ahead of Trump's Tariff Announcement
It turns out some of America's wealthiest business bigwigs might've dodged a bullet when President Donald Trump's tariff announcements hit the markets. Figureheads like Mark Zuckerberg, Safra Catz, and Jamie Dimon cashed out millions before the tremors began, not because they were privy to some secret information, but because top-tier investors treat their portfolios differently than the average Joe.
In the first quarter of the year, CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Oracle CEO Safra Catz, and JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon were among the top 10 most significant stock sellers, according to data from The Washington Service. They unloaded a whopping 28 million shares valued at around $3.9 billion. All this happened before Trump's massive tariff hikes on America's trading partners were announced, marks that sent markets reeling. Trump's trade policies continue to create uncertainty, with the fear of the unknown keeping markets jittery.
Bloomberg first reported these figures. Neither Zuckerberg nor Catz responded to comments, while a representative for Dimon said his sale was pre-planned and disclosed ahead of time.
Executives typically sell off stock at scheduled intervals, and there's no suggestion that the top sellers were trying to beat the tariff announcement. However, the timing of their sales meant they suffered smaller losses than had they cashed out weeks later.
Zuckerberg, for one, shed 1.1 million shares worth an impressive $733.5 million during the first quarter. These transactions were made in January and February, when Meta shares were trading well above $600. By midday Wednesday, Meta shares (META) were hovering just around $530, a drop of 11% since the start of the year.
The dip in Meta's share price has thinned Zuckerberg's net worth by approximately $30 billion since the year began, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Even after his sales, Zuckerberg remained the owner of over 342 million Meta shares, around 13% of the company's total stock.
The plunge in Zuckerberg's wealth throughout the year caught everybody's attention, especially considering his efforts to cultivate a closer relationship with Trump, presumably hoping for favorable policies to boost Meta's bottom line. This included donating to and attending the president's inauguration, as well as a $25 million settlement to resolve the lawsuit Trump brought against the company for suspending his account following the January 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection, $22 million of which will go towards building Trump's presidential library.
Catz and Dimon followed suit, with the former selling 3.8 million shares worth $705 million in Oracle, and the latter disposing of more than 860,000 JPMorgan shares worth $233.8 million.
Together, the top ten insider sellers (Zuckerberg, Catz, Arora Nikesh from Palo Alto Networks, Max de Groen from Nutanix, Charles Davis from Axis Capital Holdings, Stephen Cohen from Palantir, Dimon, Eric Lefkofsky from Tempus AI, Ted Sarandos from Netflix, and Travis Boersma from Dutch Bros) cashed out a combined $3.9 billion worth of shares during the first quarter.
A correction: Earlier reports mistakenly identified Travis Boersma as the CEO of Dutch Bros. He is, in fact, the co-founder and Chairman.
Insights:
The Economic Fallout of Tariffs
- Tariffs can lead to increased costs for both businesses and consumers, impacting stock prices.
- Certain sectors, like manufacturing or retail, might be more directly affected due to their reliance on imported goods.
- Business leaders with companies heavily dependent on international trade could see a decline in their net worth due to tariff-induced market volatility.
Executives' Stock Sales: Timing is Everything
- Executives may sell off shares during regularly scheduled intervals.
- While the timing of insider sales might seem suspicious, it's usually due to pre-planned transactions or typical portfolio management.
- In an uncertain market, executives reaping smaller losses by selling before major announcements can be considered fortunate.
- Despite the massive tariff hikes by President Donald Trump, tech business leaders like Mark Zuckerberg, Safra Catz, and Jamie Dimon had already sold millions before the announcements, avoiding potential losses.
- The Washington Service data revealed that these executives unloaded a combined 28 million shares worth approximately $3.9 billion in the first quarter of the year.
- The timing of their sales meant they suffered smaller losses than they might have if they had waited weeks, even though there was no suggestion they were trying to beat the tariff announcement.
- Zuckerberg, for one, sold 1.1 million shares worth $733.5 million during the first quarter, originally when Meta shares were trading above $600.
- The dip in Meta's share price this year has decreased Zuckerberg's net worth by around $30 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
- While Zuckerberg's wealth has been impacted by the tariffs, his efforts to cultivate a relationship with Trump for potential financial benefits did not prove fruitful.
- Together, the top ten insider sellers cashed out a combined $3.9 billion worth of shares during the first quarter, with Zuckerberg, Catz, Dimon, and others among them.