The majority of Merckle's fortune is derived from his 27.7% stake in Heidelberg Materials, the publicly traded building products company formerly known as HeidelbergCement. He owns shares in the Heidelberg, Germany-based manufacturer through Spohn Cement, according to its 2022 annual report.
He also has a stake in Phoenix Group, a closely held pharmaceutical wholesaler based in Mannheim, Germany. The company had revenue of 36.3 billion euros ($38.3 billion) in the year ended Jan. 31, 2023.
Phoenix is valued using reported financial results and the average enterprise value-to-Ebitda and enterprise value-to-sales multiples of two publicly traded peers: Cardinal Health Inc and McKesson Corp. The company is owned by the Merckle family, according to its 2023 annual report, and the billionaire is credited with a 44% stake based on a historical analysis of company filings.
Cash holdings are based on an analysis of insider transactions, dividends, taxes and market performance.
Maren Holoda, a spokesperson for Phoenix Group, didn't respond to a request for comment on the net worth calculation.
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