The coronavirus continues to wreak havoc across the American economy. With unemployment approaching Depression Era levels at 13.3%, it pays to have an employer with a secure business model and fat profit margins. Here are the most profitable companies on the Fortune 500 headquartered in every state around the country.
- Berkshire Hathaway remains the most profitable company on the Fortune 500. Headquartered in Nebraska, Warren Buffett’s company generated an incredible $81.4B in profit in 2019.
- 35 companies on our map saw more than $1B in profits last year. The average company made $9.4B.
- Almost every state in the country is home to at least one Fortune 500 company. The only exceptions are New Mexico, Wyoming, Montana, South Dakota, Alaska and West Virginia.
- The most profitable companies for every state from the Fortune 500 represent a variety of different industries, including insurance, oil, retail and banking.
To create our map, first we took every company on the Fortune 500 for the year 2020. Then, we figured out the most profitable company headquartered in each state, overlaying both their logos and a color-coded map of profitability. The result is a snapshot of the biggest winners in the American economy.
Top 10 Most Profitable Companies by State (2020)
1. Berkshire Hathaway - Nebraska: $81.4B
2. Apple - California: $55.3B
3. Microsoft - Washington: $39.2B
4. JPMorgan Chase - New York: $36.4B
5. Bank of America - North Carolina: $27.4B
6. Johnson & Johnson - New Jersey: $15.1B
7. Walmart - Arkansas: $14.9B
8. ExxonMobil - Texas: $14.3B
9. Fannie Mae - Washington, DC: $14.2B
10. UnitedHealth Group: Minnesota: $13.8B
There are two important caveats to keep in mind about our map. First, the Fortune 500 looks primarily at public companies. The list includes private companies only if their financial statements are readily available. It therefore excludes a lot of highly profitable but privately held companies, like Koch Industries. And second, our map only accounts for one company in each state. Facebook, Google and Apple are each from California, but there’s only room for one on our map. That being said, a remarkable insight from our map is just how diversified the most profitable companies across the Fortune 500 actually are. There are companies representing nearly every sector of the economy, including retail (Walmart, $14.9B), banking (Bank of America, $27.4B) and oil and gas (ExxonMobil, $14.3B).
Another takeaway from our map is how the majority of companies generate a lot more than $1B in annual profits. In fact, only 11 on the map turned in less than $1B, with the average across the entire visual coming in at $9.4B. The most profitable Fortune 500 company remains Berkshire Hathaway ($81.4B) in Nebraska followed by Apple ($55.3B) in California. At the other end of the spectrum, Sanderson Farms created “only” $53M in profits in Mississippi, just enough to make it onto the Fortune 500.
It’s also interesting how our map confirms the dominant players in the economy while packing a few surprises. Oregon has Nike ($4B). Apple is in California ($55.3B). Texas is home to ExxonMobile ($14.3), and there’s a few large insurance companies in the Midwest, like UnitedHealth Group in Minnesota ($13.8B) and Progessive in Ohio ($4B). The Northeast is dominated by media companies and banks like NBC Universal in Pennsylvania ($13.1B) and JPMorgan Chase in New York ($39.2B). But check out Kansas, home to Spirit AeroSpace ($530M), a major supplier for Boeing. Or what about Micron from Idaho ($6.3B), a computer memory manufacturer? Indeed, the American economy has a lot of diversity.
Are there any surprises to you on our map? And do you work at any of these companies? Let us know how you like it in the comments.
Data: Table 1.1