Source: Bloomberg
Enterprise software giant Oracle’s increase in shareholder value and rise in share price, just minutes into Monday trading in New York City, put Larry Ellison slightly ahead of Elon Musk in overall net worth – but it was not going to last.
The Bloomberg Billionaires Index reported that Ellison saw a roughly $89 billion increase in wealth in just one day, bringing his wealth to $383.2 billion. This was the highest one-day gain ever recorded by an individual. For most of Wednesday, Ellison was the world’s richest person, before Musk narrowly surpassed him by a measly $1 billion.
Oracle’s Record-Breaking Rally
The unexpected windfall for Ellison occurs as Oracle’s stock rallied 36% on Wednesday, the biggest daily gain since 1992. The rally follows Oracle’s earnings release for the last quarter, which handily exceeded Wall Street’s expectations. The company experienced accelerated growth in bookings and expressed confidence in its cloud infrastructure business, which should provide future growth.
The company’s strong performance didn’t just benefit Ellison. The Chief Executive Officer, Safra Catz, benefited as well, with her net worth increasing by about $97 million from the gain in Oracle shares.
Oracle’s stock has risen 45% so far this year before this latest jump showing that investors are confident it is central to both the fast-growing cloud computing and artificial intelligence markets. Ellison also has the majority of his wealth directly tied to the company, as both chairman and chief technology officer at Oracle.
Musk’s Wealth Under Pressure
Elon Musk, 54, has been the world’s richest person for over 300 days, having first ascended to the position in 2021, before temporarily becoming second to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, and then LVMH chairman Bernard Arnault, who he has recently overtaken.
Musk’s wealth is largely dependent on Tesla Inc., where he is CEO. On the contrary, Tesla’s shares have dropped 14% this year, which limits some of his wealth. Musk is a member of a large compensation at Tesla tied to the completion of ambitious performance metrics. If he achieves those metrics, experts say it could make him the world’s first trillionaire.
A Tight Race for 1
Ellison’s short spell at the top demonstrates this is an area of volatility, with the stock market fluctuations moving tens of billions of dollars in hours. Although Musk regained his crown, the boost in Oracle’s stock shows Ellison is now closer than ever to overtaking him to be the globe’s richest person.
