Apple was the most profitable company on the Fortune 500 list this year. These are the biggest profit generators, and what that means about American business. (2024)
Together, the corporations on this year’s Fortune500 list generated a record $1.8 trillion in profits on $16.1 trillion in revenue.
The story of the top 10 most profitable U.S. companies reveals some major trends in the current American business landscape: Tech continues to dominate, energy companies remain in a secular decline despite a rebound in 2021, and a strong economy lifts all boats.
Techremains dominant
Apple once again took the top spot on Fortune’s list of the most profitable American companies in 2021. The tech giant raked in $94.7 billion in profits last year on revenues of $365.8 billion.
In the past, oil producers and even car companies like Ford were common sights at the top of the most profitable companies list, but these days, tech companies reign supreme. Tech giants represented three out of the top five most profitable companies in the U.S. in 2021 and half of the top 10.
Apple has also taken the top spot on the Fortune 500 most profitable list for seven out of the last eight years, only being eclipsed once by Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway in 2019.
The waning dominance of fossil fuel companies has been an ongoing trend over the past decade, and only one company, Exxon Mobil, nabbed a top spot in the most profitable list.
But that doesn’t tell the whole story.
Rising oil and gas prices lifted many energy companies to new heights in 2021, increasing the sector’s presence in this year’s Fortune 500.
Still, from 2000 to 2015, Exxon Mobil earned the top spot as the most profitable U.S. firm 12 times, while this year it only managed the number nine slot. It was also the only company that didn’t post a double-digit year-over-year increase in profits compared to 2020.
A strong economy lifts banks, mortgage lenders
A strong economy and a record year for stocks meant big business for America’s banks and investment managers in 2021.
U.S. banks pulled in $279.1 billion in profits last year, a $132 billion jump compared with 2020, FDIC data shows. Both JP Morgan Chase and Bank of America made it on this year’s top 10 most profitable U.S. firms list, while Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and Wells Fargo came in at the 13th, 14th, and 15th spots, respectively.
Low-interest rates and a strong housing market in 2021 also pushed the Federal National Mortgage Association, a.k.a Fannie Mae, into the list of most profitable firms. The mortgage lender nearly doubled its profits compared to 2020 as the red-hot housing market raged, but with the market showing signs of a slowdown as mortgage rates rise, 2022 may be a different story.
Finally, Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway saw a record year in 2021, bolstered by rising stock prices in two of its largest holdings, Apple and Bank of America. Increasing profits in the conglomerate’s railroad, utilities and energy businesses and a turnaround in its insurance-underwriting operations also helped boost results.
Here’s a look at the top 10 most profitable firms in the U.S.
Apple is one of the most profitable companies in the world due to a combination of factors, including: Strong brand and product design: Apple has a strong brand and reputation for creating high-quality and innovative products that are both functional and aesthetically pleasing.
It started in 2001 with iTunes, a free music player with a built-in store. Ever since, Apple has been raking in hundreds of millions of dollars a year from iTunes sales of music, movies, and books. In 2008, Apple introduced the App Store.
Apple is number eight on the 2023 FORTUNE Global 500 list. Walmart has topped the FORTUNE Global 500, the list of the world's largest companies by revenue for the 10th consecutive year, with sales of US$611.3 billion in 2022.
The most profitable company in the U.S. is Apple, with $94.68 billion in profit earned during their 2022 fiscal year, which began on Sept. 26, 2021, and ended on Sept. 24, 2022.
The biggest secret to Apple's success isn't about big and extravagant ideas but of simplicity. Apple makes every project and idea into successful campaigns and products by distilling them to their essence. Keeping things simple was Steve Jobs' way of dealing and making success out of projects and ideas.
Apple went public in 1980, but Jobs eventually left—only to triumphantly return several years later. Apple's success lies in a strategic vision that transcended simple desktop computing to include mobile devices and wearables. Both performance and design are key drivers of the Apple brand and its ongoing success.
Apple briefly surpassed Microsoft on Wednesday to become the most valuable company in the world, after it announced its push into artificial intelligence during its developers conference keynote on Monday. Apple had a market cap of $3.3 trillion as of about 10:45 a.m.
With every generation of the Apple I, II, and III, and eventually the Mac, they brought innovation to the design, OS platform, and related applications. Their approach is to innovate around an existing product and make it better and tie it to a broad ecosystem of software and services.
In the second quarter of fiscal year 2024, Apple reported a net income of around 23.5 billion U.S. dollars. Apple's net income figures have grown massively in the past decade, with the yearly total rising from just over six billion dollars in 2008 to around 97 billion in 2023.
What qualifies a Fortune 500 company? To be eligible for the Fortune 500 list, a company must be for-profit, publicly traded or privately held, and be a U.S.-based entity with financial statements filed with a U.S. government agency. The company must have revenue that placed it in the top 500 U.S. companies.
In 2023, Saudi Aramco, the Saudi Arabian oil giant, raked in the highest net revenue globally, scoring profits of over 247 billion U.S. dollars. Led by its current CEO Amin H. Nasser, this company, which started in 1933, thrives in the oil and gas industry.
In 2021, the iPhone accounted for 46.9% of Apple's revenue, becoming its top-selling product and a major contributor to its revenue stream [2]. This is a testament to the brand's global popularity and the robust demand for its smartphones.
Apple is the most admired company in the world for the 17th consecutive year, according to Fortune. Once again the tech giant finished first in the magazine's annual ranking of corporate reputation, based on a poll of some 3,700 executives, directors, and analysts.
"Apple has grown its brand value through strategic diversification and premiumisation. According to our research, more than 50% of respondents recognised Apple as expensive, but worth the price, reinforcing the brand's ability to demand a price premium".
As long as Apple continues to innovate, there will be heightened demand for its products and services. This leads to pricing power, expanding profit margins, and improved cash flow, which help drive the stock price higher while also allowing Apple to return capital to shareholders.
The iOS on iPhones is different from Google's Android, whereas the MacOS on the Mac computers is significantly different from Microsoft's Windows. The company also designs its own mobile processors in order to order to provide unmatched performance and better optimization with its own software.
Apple reported net income of 96.99 billion U.S. dollars in its 2023 fiscal year, down from the highest net income to date in 2022. Apple's global revenue amounted to 383.29 billion U.S. dollars in that same year.
Introduction: My name is Errol Quitzon, I am a fair, cute, fancy, clean, attractive, sparkling, kind person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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