3 CA Families Among The Richest In U.S.: Forbes

CALIFORNIA — Three Golden State families are among the 45 wealthiest in the country, according to a new ranking of family fortunes by Forbes.

The Waltons again top Forbes’ America’s Richest Families list with an estimated net worth of $267 billion, largely accumulated from their stake in Walmart, the world’s largest retailer by sales. About 45 percent of the company’s stock is controlled by the families of the seven heirs to founders Sam Walton and his brother Bud.

The second- and third-richest families are the Mars and Koch families. The Mars family owns Mars Inc., one of the world’s largest candy and pet food companies, while the Koch family started what became America's second-largest private company, Koch Industries.

In California, billionaire families named to the list include:

• (#35) The Hughes family: Headquartered in Glendale, B. Wayne Hughes founded Public Storage in El Cajon in the early 1970s. America's largest self-storage company operates over 3,000 storage facilities in the United States and Europe. Forbes estimates the Hughes family's net worth is $13.8 billion.
• (#41) Charles & Rupert Johnson: According to Forbes, the Johnson family built mutual fund powerhouse Franklin Resources, also known as Franklin Templeton, and still owns 40 percent of the NYSE-listed firm. Rupert Johnson founded the company in New York City in 1947, and Franklin Templeton Investments moved its headquarters to San Mateo in the 1970s. Forbes estimates the Johnson's net worth to be $10.5 billion.
• (#44) Bechtel family: According to Forbes, Warren Bechtel founded his eponymous engineering and construction firm in 1898 in San Francisco. The $16.3 billion business has stayed in the family for five generations and helped build landmarks like the Hoover Dam. Stanford alum Brendan Bechtel took over as CEO in 2017 and moved the company's headquarters to Virginia the following year. Forbes estimates the Bechtel family is worth $10 billion.

See the full list of America’s Richest Families.