John Middleton – Billionaire

John Middleton sold his family’s storied tobacco business to Philip Morris-parent Altria for $2.9 billion in 2007. The original family business, John Middleton Inc., was founded as a small retail tobacco shop in downtown Philadelphia in 1856 by his great-great-grandfather John Middleton. The company began manufacturing in the 1950s and, by the end of the decade, had shuttered its retail business to focus on selling its own products. The company launched the now-famous Black & Mild cigar brand in 1980. Middleton bought out several of his relatives’ stakes in the company in 2003 for about $200 million amid the tobacco lawsuits that threatened to cripple the family business. Now, Middleton’s sister Anna Nupson has taken legal action and is asking the court in Montgomery County, Penn., to strike a new deal; Middleton has denounced Nupson’s proceedings. Middleton is also the largest individual shareholder in the Philadelphia Phillies, with a stake of roughly 50%. He sits on the board of trustees at Amherst, his alma mater, and earned his MBA from Harvard Business School.

John S. Middleton Net Worth: John S. Middleton is an American businessman who has a net worth of $1.8 billion. John S. Middleton graduated from Amherst College in the late ’70s. He is of the family that founded the cigar producing business John Middleton, Inc. That company was founded by his family in 1856 and had its origins as a tobacco shop in Philadelphia. By the time Middleton sold the business, it was the world’s third biggest manufacturer of cigars. John Middleton, Inc. was sold to the Altria Group, which is a division of Philip Morris, for nearly three billion dollars in cash. Middleton and his wife, Leigh, are heavily involved in local charitable efforts in Philadelphia. They donated a reported 30 million dollars to Project HOME, about 16 million dollars to Penn Medicine, and another 16 million dollars to the local school districts in Philadelphia. Middleton and his wife won the 2014 Philadelphia Award in honor of their contributions to improving life in Philly through their charitable giving. Middleton owns a stake in the Philadelphia Phillies. As of the fall of 2014, it was reported by “The Star-Ledger” that Middleton holds a 48 percent stake in the franchise and is pushing to become the team’s majority owner.

Source:

1. forbes

2. celebritynetworth