Spotify Technology SA (NYSE:SPOT) co-founder and chief executive Daniel Ek has pounced on the music streaming giant’s impressive year-to-date rally by putting part of his stake in the company up for sale.
SEC filings show that Ek sold 250,000 shares in February and another 400,000 earlier this month for a combined value of around $175 million. In both instances, the shares were acquired in June 2016.
According to SEC filings, chief financial officer Paul Vogel also put up around $6.6 million worth of Spotify shares for sale.
Spotify’s share price has doubled since it went public in April 2018 and is currently up 270% since slumping below $80 in late 2022.
Year to date, the stock is up 50%, thanks to a resounding sales beat in the first quarter following a 25% workforce reduction.
Ek’s net worth, which primarily consists of Spotify shares, is around $4.4 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Prior to recent disposals, Ek owned 15.3% of outstanding ordinary Spotify shares and held 30.5% of total voting power through the ownership of beneficiary certificates according to the annual report for the period ending 31 December 2023.