CEO of Amazon tops list of richest
Gates now No. 2; Waltons see gain
Amazon boss Jeff Bezos ranks No. 1 on the Forbes 400 richest Americans list for 2018, leaping ahead of Microsoft founder Bill Gates in the first shift at the top since 1994. The heirs of Walmart founder Sam Walton saw their wealth increase but rankings remained unchanged near the top of the list.
On Wednesday the magazine reported the nation’s richest men and women continued to see their wealth increase with the total net worth of the list coming in at $2.9 trillion, a record high and up 7 percent from last year. Half the total wealth of the list is controlled by those ranked in the top 45.
The average billionaire on the Forbes 400 list was worth $7.2 billion, up from $6.7 billion from a year earlier. The minimum net worth to make the list rose $100 million to $2.1 billion.
The three children of Walmart’s founder saw gains in their wealth but their rankings remained
steady with Jim Walton ranking 11th on the list and Alice and Rob Walton tied at 12th. Alice Walton is the richest among the 57 women on the list this year.
Warren Stephens’ of Little Rock ranked No. 302 and Johnelle Hunt, widow of J.B. Hunt Transport Services founder J.B. Hunt, of Fayetteville was placed at No. 259.
John Tyson, chairman of Springdale-based Tyson Foods Inc., with a net worth of $2 billion was one of 17 who fell off the list this year. He ranked No. 388 last year and entered the list two years ago.
Michael Pakko, chief economist at the Arkansas Economic Development Institute at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock said having some of the richest people in the nation call Arkansas home, particularly with that wealth coming from thriving Arkansas-based companies, helps dispute preconceptions of Arkansas as an insignificant Southern state.
“It raises the stature of the state,” Pakko said.
The strength of a hot stock market helped most of the individual on the list, Forbes reported, especially Bezos. He pushed Bill Gates from the top spot with a net worth of $160 billion, nearly twice Bezo’s worth last year. Bezos is also the first person on the list with a net worth of more than $150 billion. He saw an increase in his net worth of $78.5 billion as Amazon shares more than doubled in value for the year.
Microsoft’s Bill Gates was pushed to second place with a net worth of $97 billion, trailing Bezos by $63 billion. Warren Buffet, chairman of Berkshire Hathaway was ranked No. 3 with $88.3 billion, Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg was No. 4 with $61 billion and former Oracle Chief Executive Officer Larry Ellison rounded out the top five with $58.4 billion.
President Donald Trump’s net worth stood steady at $3.1 billion but he ranked No. 259, down 11 spots from No. 248 last year. He is the first billionaire president.
The list has 15 newcomers this year. The youngest person on the list remains Even Spiegel, 28, creator of Snapchat. The oldest is No. 344 Alexander Spanos, a real estate developer and controlling stake holder in the Los Angeles Chargers football team.
For the first time Forbes also graded those on the list by their philanthropic giving. The magazine assigned each list member a rank between 1 and 5, with 5 being the most charitable. The scores were based on estimates of each list members total lifetime charitable giving and by looking at what percentages of their total wealth they’d given away.
Only 29 of the richest Americans earned a score of 5 by giving away $1 billion and/ or 20 percent of their total net worth. Bill Gates donated $35.8 billion to his foundation, the largest amount, according to Forbes. The magazine notes some found fault with the rankings since it favors those who make their contributions known compared to those who make anonymous gifts.
Jim Walton of Bentonville, chairman and CEO of Arvest Bank Group and a son of Sam Walton, kept his spot at No. 11 but saw his net worth increase to $45.2 billion. Last year his net worth was $38.4 billion. He was given a philanthropy score of 2 by the magazine. A rank of 2 indicates between $30 million and $299 million of giving and/or between 1 and 4.99 percent of total wealth.
S. Robson “Rob” Walton of Bentonville, the oldest son in the family, tied for 12th with his net worth up to $44.9 billion from $38.3 billion. He had a philanthropy rating of N/A which indicated Forbes could not find any information on the person’s charitable giving.
Alice Walton of Fort Worth, Sam Walton’s only daughter and the founder of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, tied for 12th place with $44.9 billion an increase from $38.2 billion a year ago. She earned a philanthropy score of 3. A score of 3 indicates $100 million to $999 million of giving and/or 5 to 9.9 percent of total wealth.
Developer and entrepreneur Johnelle Hunt ranked No. 259 on the list with $3.1 billion. Last year, she had a net worth of $2.8 billion. She earned a philanthropy score of 2.
Stephens, the CEO of Little Rock-based investment bank Stephens Inc., ranked No. 302 with $2.7 billion, up from $2.5 billion last year. He earned a philanthropy score of 1. A score of 1 indicates less than $30 million given and/or less than 1 percent of total wealth.
Lukas Walton of Wyoming, son of Christy and the late John Walton, ranked No. 32 with a net worth of $15.3 billion, up from $13.2 billion last year. At 32, he is the third-youngest person on the list. Christy Walton of Wyoming, widow of John Walton ranked No. 70 with a net worth of $7.2 billion.
Ann Walton Kroenke of Columbia, Mo., ranked No. 83 with $6.5 billion. She is the daughter of Sam Walton’s brother, James “Bud” Walton. Her husband Stan Kroenke, who owns the Los Angeles Rams, ranked No. 58 with $8.5 billion. Nancy Walton Laurie of Henderson, Nev., another daughter of Bud Walton, ranked No. 109 with $5.7 billion.
Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys and a member of the 1964 national championship football team for the Arkansas Razorbacks, ranked No. 75 with $6.9 billion, increasing his net worth from $5.6 billion. The Dallas Cowboys are worth $4.8 billion, up 14 percent from last year, according to Forbes and are the most valuable sports team in the world.
This is the 37th year for the list. The Forbes rankings are based on the billionaires’ wealth Sept. 7, when the placements on the list and net worth of those listed are finalized. The magazine looks at a variety of assets, including holdings in public and private companies, real estate, art, yachts and car collections. It also factors in debt.