Autry Stephens: The Billionaire Who Outpaced Zuckerberg Yet Isn't Sure What To Do With His Wealth
The 85-year-old founder of Endeavor Energy Resources, Autry Stephens, has recently sold his company for a whopping $26 billion, making him the wealthiest oil tycoon in the U.S. However, he appears uncertain about his future.
What Happened: The sale to Diamondback Energy, which was announced earlier this week, has propelled Stephens from 130th to 77th on Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index. His net worth has surged by $17.5 billion since this time last year, behind only Nvidia’s Jensen Huang and Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg. Despite his immense wealth, Stephens appears to be uncertain about his future.
In an interview by The Wall Street Journal about what he would do with his newfound billions, Stephens said that he hadn’t thought about it yet.
Stephens, who established the company in 1979, expressed his reluctance to leave the company, attributing his decision to a cancer diagnosis.
“I’ll miss the people there,” he said.
“It was kind of a little family.”
Stephens, who hails from a modest background, drove an old-model Toyota Land Cruiser to work and flew budget on Southwest Airlines. Despite his immense fortune and a brief stint on the truTV reality series “Black Gold,” his career trajectory seemed to remain focused on his initial ambitions, which were “to earn a steady paycheck and comfortable retirement,” according to his University of Texas Austin alumni profile.
Why It Matters: In 2023, the top 10 wealthiest people, including Elon Musk, saw their wealth grow dramatically, thanks to a strong stock market and soaring prices of technology stocks. In 2024, Mark Zuckerberg’s wealth also surged, making him the fourth richest person in the world.
Image Credits: Endeavor Energy Resources
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