If You Invested $1,000 In Microsoft Stock When Bill Gates Left As CEO, Here's How Much You'd Have Now

Bill Gates was a co-founder of Microsoft Corporation MSFT and served as the company's first CEO, leading the company from 1975 to 2000 in the role.

While he is no longer CEO of the company today, Gates serves as a technology advisor, helping the company with its investments and growth in new technology and artificial intelligence.

Here's a look back at how investors would have done buying shares of Microsoft after Gates stepped down as CEO.

What Happened: Founders of companies typically serve as the first chief executive officer of their creation before someone else from within the company or from the outside is brought in to lead and potentially push the business in a new direction.

After Gates stepped down, Steve Ballmer became the second CEO in company history. Ballmer, who was Microsoft's president, was hired by Gates in 1980 and became president of the company in 1998.

Shares of Microsoft hit a high of $27.15 on Jan. 13, 2000, when it was announced that Gates had stepped down as CEO of the company.

A $1,000 investment in Microsoft stock at the time could have purchased 36.82 shares. A two-for-one stock split in 2003 would have turned the investment into 73.64 shares.

The $1,000 investment would be worth $31,464.16 today, based on the current price of $427.27 for Microsoft shares.

This represents a return of 3,046.4% since Gates stepped down as CEO.

The same $1,000 invested in the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust SPY, which tracks the S&P 500, would be worth $3,987.49 today. This represents a hypothetical return of 298.8% over the same time period.

Clearly, for investors, backing Microsoft stock after Gates' departure was a savvy decision that yielded enhanced performance.

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Why It's Important: Gates will always be remembered for his time leading Microsoft over multiple decades.

Since Gates left, Ballmer and the company's current CEO, Satya Nadella, have kept the company growing and entering new sectors and markets.

Gates’ stake in Microsoft helped the company's co-founder become the richest person in the world for many years. Gates remains one of the most valuable billionaires in the world, even after donating portions of his money to philanthropic efforts.

Microsoft had its IPO in 1986 at $21 a share, and Gates became a millionaire with 45% ownership of the company.

Today, Gates is worth $160 billion, according to Bloomberg, ranking sixth in the world.

Microsoft is the third most valuable company in the world, worth $3.18 trillion at the time of writing, trailing only Apple and NVIDIA.

Read Next:

• Bill Gates Had A ‘Very Bad Habit' That Could Have Derailed His Career

This article was previously published by Benzinga and has been updated.

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