Google Cofounder Sergey Brin Just Sold Alphabet Shares For The First Time Since 2017

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GOOG
e cofounder Sergey Brin sold $32.7 million worth of Alphabet shares last week, marking his first sale of the tech giant’s stock since 2017.

According to SEC filings, Brin sold 13,889 Alphabet shares on Friday—a tiny sliver of his more than 38 million shares in the company. Alphabet, Google’s parent company, has seen its stock price skyrocket during the pandemic. When Brin last sold shares in November 2017, Alphabet’s share price was about $1,035. Now, its shares are worth nearly $2,341, close to their all time high. 

After taxes, Brin will walk away with an estimated $20.6 million. A spokesperson for Brin did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Forbes on why he decided to sell now or what the proceeds will be used for.

Brin founded the search engine Google with Larry Page in 1998; the two met at Stanford University while studying for advanced degrees in computer science. They took the company public in 2004. In 2015, Google—which had expanded to include activities such as self-driving cars and health care research—became known as Alphabet. Though he stepped down as Alphabet’s president in December 2019, Brin remains a controlling shareholder and a board member. He’s currently the ninth richest person in the world, worth $97.1 billion—one spot behind Page, according to Forbes’ estimates.

Brin has kept a relatively low profile since he and Page stepped back from Alphabet. Brin is reportedly funding a secretive airship company called LTA Research and Exploration, which is seeking to build an airship to deliver humanitarian aid in disaster zones. He’s also funded research of Parkinson’s disease, which runs in his family.