The buyer at the November 2011 auction was not identified. The ComicConnect records, as reflected in contemporaneous reporting, did not reveal the winning bidder’s identity. The comic passed from Cage’s possession, via the intermediary of the auction, into the hands of an anonymous collector.
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THE MISSING COMICS: WHAT WASN’T RECOVERED
The theft in 2000 was not limited to Action Comics No. 1. Multiple accounts note that other comics were taken in the same incident: a Detective Comics No. 1 (1937) and a Detective Comics No. 27 (1939, featuring the first appearance of Batman) were among the items reported stolen. The 929nin.com article notes that Cage also lost a copy of Detective Comics No. 27 in the theft. The Duluth News Tribune account mentions Detective Comics No. 1 and Detective Comics No. 27.
As of the contemporaneous reporting in 2011, Detective Comics No. 27—the Batman first appearance—had not been recovered. It remains unaccounted for in the public record. Detective Comics No. 27 is, in its own right, among the most valuable comics in existence, second in cultural significance and market value to Action Comics No. 1. A high-grade copy would be worth tens of millions of dollars at current market levels.
The GoCollect account of Cage’s collection notes that “many were recovered in 2011, but much of the collection is still missing.” This formulation suggests that more than just Action Comics No. 1 was recovered in 2011, though the specifics are not detailed in available reporting. The Duluth News Tribune account, from the same period, refers specifically to Action Comics No. 1 as the recovered item and identifies Detective Comics No. 27 as still missing.