Wal-Mart Stores posted 2007 revenues of $378.8 billion (up 7.9% from 2006) and profits of $12.7 billion, making it yet again the No. 1 corporation in the Fortune 500, Fortune announced.
Wal-Mart is also the biggest employer, employing more people (2 million) than the US armed forces (1.4 million).
Below, the top 10 largest corporations in the US, by revenue:
Highlights from the top 10:
- Exxon Mobil was in the No. 2 position ($372.8 billion in revenue and $40.6 billion in profits) – the fifth straight year (and seven of the last eight) that it led in profits.
- Chevron moved up one spot to No. 3, with $210.8 billion in revenue and profits of $18.7 billion, and ConocoPhillips held the No. 5 position.
- AT&T, ranked No. 10, is used by every company on the Fortune 500 list for data and phone connections; one in three Americans uses a cellphone on an AT&T wireless network.
Other key findings, from the Fortune 500:
- From 2006 to 2007, overall Fortune 500 revenue increased 7.1% to $10.6 trillion; profits decreased 17.8%, to $645.2 billion.
- By market value, the largest companies were Exxon Mobil, General Electric, Microsoft, AT&T and Procter & Gamble.
- The fastest-growing companies in profits in 2007 were…
- AK Steel Holding
- Qwest Communications
- Pitney Bowes
- Williams
- MeadWestvaco
- Due to the boom in energy and commodities, Hess, Deere, and AK Steel Holding were among the top 20 performing stocks of 2007. Also included were Apple, Amazon.com, and Gamestop.
- The states with the most Fortune 500 corporate headquarters:
- Texas – 58
- New York – 55
- California – 52
- Illinois – 33
- Ohio – 28
The complete list and related stories appears in the May 5th issue of Fortune and at http://www.fortune.com/500.
