Venture capitalist Chamath Palihapitiya sold the remainder of his shares in space tourism company Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. for $213 million, Reuters reported.
Palihapitiya sold all of his personal stake in the company totaling 6.2 million shares when it was priced at $34.32 per share on Tuesday, according to Virgin Galactic’s market summary from Google Finance.
Since Feb. 11, when the Virgin Galactic stock price hit its peak across six months at $59.41 per share, the company’s stock has been trending downward hitting its low point on March 5 at $24.20 per share, according to the Google Finance market summary of Virgin Galactic (SPCE). The stock is currently listed at $27.29 per share which is a 9.93% decrease based on the closing time of 4 p.m. on Friday.
In an emailed statement, Palihapitiya explained to Reuters that the sale of his personal shares was done so he can fund a future project to direct that money towards a “large investment” to help fight the battle against climate change. (RELATED: JPMorgan Chase Announces Five-Year, 30-Billion-Dollar Commitment To Advance Racial Equity)
“The details of this investment will be made public in the next few months. I continue to be a significant investor in Virgin Galactic through Social Capital Hedosophia Holdings and I remain as dedicated as ever to Virgin Galactic’s team, mission and prospects,” Palihapitiya told Reuters.