Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) Chairman Bill Gates -- net worth: $59.2 billion -- is no longer the world's wealthiest person. According to the HeraldSun, Mexico's Carlos Slim -- net worth: $67.8 billion -- now sits in that throne. In April, Slim surpassed Berkshire Hathaway Inc.'s (NYSE: BRK.A) CEO Warren Buffett as the world's second richest person. And today, Slim surpasses Gates.

How must Gates feel? I don't know. He has commented in the past that he doesn't think about being the world's wealthiest person much. But he has occupied that throne since 1995. After 12 years, there could be a twinge of regret at having lost the crown. But Gates still has plenty of money, particularly since Buffett contributed a huge chunk of his fortune to Gates' foundation.

Meanwhile how did Slim climb so fast? A 27% surge in the share price of America Movil (NYSE: AMX), Latin America's largest mobile phone operator controlled by Slim, from March to June enabled Slim to surpass Gates by $8.6 billion. The 5.7% increase in Microsoft stock in the second quarter was no match for the sharp rise in valuations of Slim's companies. He also owns shares of Telefonos de Mexico (NYSE: TMX) up 11% and Grupo Financiero Inbursa S.A. (MXK: GFINBURO) up 20%.

While I don't have earnings forecasts to evaluate Inbursa, it's not too late to consider buying in to Slim's other companies.

• American Movil. AMX's PEG of 1 -- based on a P/E of 26.2 on earnings growth of 26% to $4.22 in 2008 -- looks reasonable to me.
• Telmex. TMX's PEG of 2.5 -- based on a P/E of 12 on earnings growth of 4.9% to $3.31 in 2008 -- looks expensive to me -- I'd avoid this one.

It's not every day that a king gets dethroned. The market is sending a signal that might be worth heeding.

Peter Cohan is president of Peter S. Cohan & Associates, a management consulting and venture capital firm. He also teaches management at Babson College and edits The Cohan Letter. He has no financial interest in the securities mentioned in this post.

Bill Gates dethroned as world's richest person originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 03 Jul 2007 11:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.