Retail giant Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) landed on top of the 54th Fortune 500 list again with 2007 revenue of nearly $379 billion. The company in the #2 spot, Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM), beat Wal-Mart in terms of profits though bringing in $40 billion in profit (the most of all the companies on the Fortune 500 2008 list) vs. Wal-Mart's $12 billion. That's the fifth straight year that Exxon Mobil has made the most money (and 7th of the last 8 years). Guess that's why gas is so expensive.
Despite the struggling economy, something is still working for these companies. The same can't be said for the #4 company on the list, General Motors (NYSE: GM), who experienced revenues of $182 billion in 2007 but profits of -$38 billion.
Overall Fortune 500 revenue increased 7.1% from 2006 to $10.6 trillion, but overall Fortune 500 profits decreased 17.8% from 2006 to $654.2 trillion.
2007 was a strange and difficult year for most businesses. It will be interesting to see what marketing strategies companies use to try to thrive (or survive) during in the ongoing economic environment.
Really though....how about Exxon Mobil? What do you think - good, bad, indifferent?
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