4. WHAT IS FORTUNE 500?
The Fortune 500 is an annual list compiled and
published by Fortune magazine that ranks the 500
public corporation worldwide as measured by their
Gross Revenue.
The first fortune 500 list was published in 1930.
This list ranks only public companies, or those which
have issued securities through an offering and which
are traded on the stock market
5. In 1990, US companies were added to compile a truly
global list of top industrial corporations as ranked by
sales.
Since 1995, the list had its current form, listing also
top financial corporations and service providers by
revenue.
In addition, academic and business researchers look
to these companies to learn about practices in various
industries and to discover the secrets to their business
and financial success.
11. 1. Sales growth ranking
Tracking the increase in sales of a company is a
way to determine if the company is indeed growing.
This is very important to investors.
Sales growth is also indicative of the state of the
economy. One would expect a company's sales to
grow during a healthy period of economic activity.
Growth rate> general growth in the
industry outperform
12. 2. Assets ranking
Companies listed on the Fortune 500
usually have large and growing asset
balances.
An assets is any item of economic value
owned by the corporation, accounts
receivable, inventory, office equipment, and
property.
13. 3. Earning ranking
Earning are often the single most important
determinant of a corporation’s stock price.
Earnings = Revenues – Cost
of Sales – Operating
Expenses – Taxes
14. 4.Capitalization Ranking
Capitalization is the sum of corporation's
long-term debt, stock, and retained
earnings. It may also be called invested
capital.
Number of shares outstanding * Price per
Share
market price of the entire company / market
capitalization
17. Rank: 1
Previous rank: 2
CEO: Michael T. Duke
Headquarters:
702 S.W. Eighth St.
Bentonville, AR. 72716
479-273-4000
Website: www.walmart.com
18. Wal-Mart reclaimed the top spot
in the Fortune 500 in 2012 after
slipping to No. 2 last year. The
retailer’s refocus on low prices
continued to attract frugal
shoppers into the discounter's
U.S. stores.
For fiscal year 2012, sales rose
5.9%, to $443.9 billion. Despite
relatively strong sales, Wal-Mart
must hold onto its U.S. shoppers,
which make up 62% of the chain’s
net sales.
Beyond the U.S., Wal-Mart
continues to investigate
allegations that executives in
Mexico paid more than $24 million
in bribes to speed the retailer’s
expansion there. The probe has
widened to Brazil, India and
China.
19. Rank: 2
Previous rank: 1
CEO: Rex W. Tillerson
Headquarters:
5959 Las Colinas Blvd.
Irving, TX. 75039
972-444-1000
Website: www.exxonmobil.com
20. Refining has been considered a
drag on earnings by some analysts,
but the world's biggest refiner didn't
buy that logic. It resisted the trend
of spinning off refineries to focus on
oil drilling.
In 2012, Exxon Mobil posted the
second-highest annual profit in
U.S. history, surpassed only by its
own 2008 record. Net income rose
to $44.8 billion, a 9.3% jump from
the previous year and only slightly
below its 2008 record $45.22
billion.
In the year ahead, the company
plans to reduce oil and natural gas
production by 1% and focus on
investments in tapping into hard-toreach fields.
22. Rank: 3
Previous rank: 3
CEO: John S. Watson
Headquarters:
6001 Bollinger Canyon Rd.
San Ramon, CA. 94583
925-842-1000
Website: www.chevron.com
23. The nation’s second-largest oil company saw another strong year on better
performance from its refining business. Chevron’s 2012 earnings of $26.2
billion are the second highest result in company history, behind $26.9 billion in
2011.But while the San Ramon, Calif.-based company earned more from
processing crude into fuels such as gasoline and diesel, it also has plans to
spend 12% more in energy exploration and investment in the year ahead. A
bulk of that investment is expected to go toward upstream crude oil and natural
gas exploration production projects, such as one of the world’s largest natural
gas projects in Western Australia. It also plans to restart business in Brazil,
where earlier this year authorities allowed the company to resume production
on wells off the coast of Rio de Janeiro. Chevron had been banned, after more
than 100,000 gallons of crude seeped into the Atlantic Ocean.
24. Rank: 4
Previous rank: N.A.
CEO: Greg C. Garland
Headquarters:
3010 Briarpark Dr.
Houston, TX. 77042
281-293-6600
Website: www.phillips66.com
25. Phillips 66, ConocoPhillips's spun-off refining arm, was
separated from the exploration arm of the energy giant last
year. The Phillips 66 name has been among the company's
most-recognized brands for decades, first with Phillips
Petroleum and then ConocoPhillips after its merger with
Conoco in 2002. (The first 66-branded gas station opened in
Kansas some 86 years ago.) Its $169.5 billion in sales shot it
up to No. 4 on the Fortune 500 on its first year (back) on the
list.
27. Rank: 5
Previous rank: 7
CEO: Warren E. Buffett
Headquarters:
3555 Farnam St.
Omaha, NE. 68131
402-346-1400
Website: www.bershirehathway.com
28. Berkshire Hathaway’s per-share book
value rose 14.4% in 2012, but it was less
than the Standard & Poor 500’s 16percent gain. Amid a stock market that hit
record highs, the index has outperformed
Berkshire over the past four years. CEO
Warren Buffett called 2012 a “subpar”
year, saying if the market continues to
gain this year, the benchmark stock index
could have its first five-year win ever.
Though the Omaha, Neb.-based holding
company made no major acquisitions, it
started 2013 with a big one: Ketchup!
Berkshire teamed up with 3G Capital for a
$23 billion acquisition of H.J. Heinz.
Beyond all that’s Americana, Berkshire
continued to see opportunities in the
printed word. It spent $344 million to buy
28 daily newspapers. In the future, Buffett
expects more purchases of newspapers if
the price is right
29. Rank: 6
Previous rank: 17
CEO: Timothy D. Cook
Headquarters:
1 Infinite Loop
Cupertino, CA. 95014
408-996-1010
Website: www.apple.com
30. Apple is bigger than ever -- the
company cracked the Fortune 10
this year. But it’s a high-pressure
job, being king of the hill. At Apple's
press event this past October, it
maintained more than disrupted
with its software upgrades and iPad
mini announcement. Also, CEO
Tim Cook had to apologize a lot in
the past year -- once in September
for the failure of Apple’s maps app,
and then to Chinese consumers
this April for slow repair services -this in a market that Cook said this
past January would be Apple's
largest. Still, when every executive
wants to invent the iPod of ___,
Apple remains an innovation icon.
32. Rank: 7
Previous rank: 5
CEO: Daniel F. Akerson
Headquarters:
300 Renaissance Center
Detroit, MI. 48265
313-556-5000
Website: www.gm.com
33. American taxpayers still own part of
General Motors. The U.S. government
is eager to sell its remaining 19% stake
in GM -- leftovers from the 2008 auto
industry bailout.
In 2010, CEO Dan Akerson led the
company through what was then the
biggest IPO in history. Today, GM is
focusing on selling cars abroad, with
China being a key market. GM has
roughly 15% market share in China
now, and has said it will introduce 17
refreshed models there in 2013. Though
the carmaker predicts only modest
growth in U.S. and China auto sales this
coming year, it is making money. GM is
still one of the 50 most profitable
companies in the Fortune 500, despite a
32% decrease in earnings in 2012,
down from $9.1 billion in 2011 to $6.2
billion.
35. America's biggest industrial company is feeling the pain from the slowdown
in U.S. and European manufacturing. Early this year, that sluggish growth
hurt the company's power and water unit, as struggling U.S. and European
manufacturers purchased fewer GE generators. Given that trend, GE must
figure out how to squeeze more profits out of other sections of its business
such as aviation, and its financing arm GE Capital. It is also increasing
investments in manufacturing tied to the oil and gas industry. This year, it
paid almost $3 billion for oilfield pump maker Lufkin Industries.
37. Rank: 9
Previous rank: 12
CEO: William R. Klesse
Headquarters:
1 Valero Way
San Antonio, TX. 78249
210-345-2000
Website: www.valero.com
38. The refining giant is going through some big changes. Earlier this year, Valero
announced that it planned to spin off its retail business, called CST Brands, a
move that the board approved in April 2013. Shareholders like the strategy, and
the company's share price has been increasing, overall, since the initial
announcement. Valero remains the world's largest independent refiner, with 16
refineries and ethanol plants across the U.S., Caribbean, the United Kingdom
and Canada. Profit margins continue to be tight for the refining business, but as
more and more oil and gas companies shed their refineries, Valero remains one
of the most powerful games in town.
39. Rank: 10
Previous rank: 9
CEO: Alan R. Mulally
Headquarters:
1 American Rd.
Dearborn, MI. 48126
313-322-3000
Website: www.ford.com
40. Ford continues to move along in the midst of a challenging auto
market. Europe, in particular, is troubling -- the company
announced last year that it would close three factories and cut at
least 6,200 jobs there. But there is some good news for the iconic
American automaker: its Ford Focus was recently named the topselling car in the world. Before an accounting change reflected a
72% net loss, Ford's full year net income was down from 2011 by
about 6%, at $5.7 billion.
