The Greek philosopher Heraclitus is said to have said, “Change is the only constant in life.” Even though he lived thousands of years ago, this quote is still relevant, even in the business world.
In the past 40 years alone, we’ve seen the business and investment worlds completely transform, resulting in a changing of the guard at the world’s largest publicly traded companies (by revenue). Here’s a look at what’s changed over the past four decades.
The largest companies in 1984
|
Company |
Turnover in 1984 |
|---|---|
|
ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) |
$88.6 billion |
|
General Motors (NYSE: GM) |
$74.6 billion |
|
Mobile |
$54.6 billion |
|
Ford engine (NYSE: F) |
$44.5 billion |
|
International business machines (NYSE: IBM) (IBM company) |
$40.2 billion |
Source: Fortune 500. Revenue rounded to the nearest 10 million.
The one thing that stands out about that era was the dominance of oil and vehicles. IBM was the leading technology company, but other than that, oil and vehicles were the big boys in town.
Today’s Biggest Companies
|
Company |
Revenue in the past four quarters |
|---|---|
|
Walmart (NYSE: WMT) |
$657.3 billion |
|
Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) |
$604.3 billion |
|
Saudi Arabian oil (SASE: 2222) |
$495.4 billion |
|
Sinopec (SEHK: 386) |
$473.5 billion |
|
PetroChina (NYSE: PTR) |
$430.7 billion |
Source: Fortune 500. Revenue rounded to the nearest 10 million.
The most striking aspect of today’s largest companies is the rise of retail and technology (with Amazon in the sweet spot of the two). Oil remains a heavyweight due to its global dependency, but consumers have shown that they value the one-stop-shop nature of companies like Walmart and Amazon.
Walmart has a strong position on the brick-and-mortar side, and Amazon has revolutionized e-commerce. Will these companies lead the pack in 40 years? Only time will tell. But one thing is certain: change is almost inevitable.
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John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Stefon Walters has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon and Walmart. The Motley Fool recommends General Motors and International Business Machines and recommends the following options: long January 2025 $25 calls on General Motors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
These Were the 5 Biggest Companies in 1984, and These Are the 5 Biggest Companies Now was originally published by The Motley Fool
