Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg is now the fourth richest person in the world following a surge in Meta’s share price that has increased his net worth more than any other individual this year.
In 2024 so far, Zuckerberg’s fortune has climbed by $ 42.4 billion, which has vaulted him to fourth place on Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index. He has now overtaken Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, who dropped to fifth-wealthiest billionaire.
Zuckerberg, who owns a 13% stake in Meta META, +20.32%, is now worth $ 170 billion, thanks to a surge in shares in the social media company he first set up in 2004 while a student at Harvard University.
Shares in Meta rocketed 20% higher on Friday to a new record of $ 474.99, following the Facebook owner’s decision to declare a first-ever dividend on the back of a sharp increase in the company’s revenue. The company added $ 204.5 billion to its valuation — the largest one-day market-cap haul in Wall Street history.
Meta shares have increased by 34% in 2024 and 154% over the previous 12 months, with stock in the California company up 1,149% since Facebook’s initial public offering in 2012. Facebook changed its name to Meta Platforms in October 2021.
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Zuckerberg, who became the world’s youngest self-made billionaire aged 23 in 2007, is also set to receive $ 700 million a year in dividends from Meta via his stake in the company.
Read: Mark Zuckerberg could pay millions to the IRS on Meta dividends. He still might be getting ‘a major break.’
The increases have seen the 39-year-old, who was born in White Plains, New York, ascend the ranks of Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index, which is now increasingly dominated by U.S. tech billionaires.
Zuckerberg now sits behind No. 1 billionaire Tesla TSLA, -0.50% CEO Elon Musk ($ 205 billion) and Amazon AMZN, +7.87% founder Jeff Bezos, whose wealth climbed to $ 197 billion from $ 144 billion on Friday.
No. 2 billionaire Bezos has now replaced LVMH MC, -0.10% CEO Bernard Arnault ($ 185 billion), who slipped to No. 3. A big earnings beat and encouraging cloud talk from Amazon drove a 7.8% gain for shares on Friday.
Read: Amazon says the ‘magic words.’ They spurred a $ 130 billion market-cap boost.
No. 5, Microsoft MSFT, +1.84% founder Bill Gates is worth $ 145 billion.
Just two individuals listed on the top 10 — luxury goods tycoon Bernard Arnault and Berkshire Hathaway BRK.B, +1.12% CEO Warren Buffett — made their money outside the tech industry.
The fast-paced growth in Zuckerberg’s net worth saw him top the ranks of those who have made the sharpest increases in their wealth this year, ahead of Indian steel magnate Gautam Adani and Nvidia NVDA, +4.97% CEO Jensen Huang.
Zuckerberg’s bulging net worth comes as the world’s richest person, Elon Musk, has seen his wealth drop by more than any other individual in 2024 so far. His net worth has decreased by $ 24.2 billion so far this year, following a sharp 24% drop in Tesla’s share price. Musk currently owns a 13% stake in Tesla.
Zuckerberg, alongside billionaires including Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, has vowed to give away 99% of his wealth.