"America's Most Admired Companies"

Anne Fisher

Fortune

March 19, 2007, pp. 88-94

Each year, Fortune magazine gives its rankings of America's most admired companies, based on ratings made by US and worldwide executives, directors, and securities analysts. This year's Top Twenty in America were:

1. General Electric
2. Starbucks
3. Toyota Motor
4. Berkshire Hathaway
5. Southwest Airlines
6. FedEx
7. Apple Computer
8. Google
9. Johnson & Johnson
10. Procter & Gamble
11. Goldman Sachs
12. Microsoft
13. Target
14. 3M
15. Nordstrom
16. United Parcel Service
17. American Express
18. Costco Wholesale
19. IBM (tie)

19. Wal-Mart Stores (tie)

Ratings were also made for companies in the respondents' own industries on Social Responsibility, Innovation, Long-term investment value, Use of corporate assets, People Management, Financial soundness, Quality of products/services, and Quality of management. The high scorers on these criteria were:

• Social responsibility—CHS, United Parcel Service, Whole Foods Market
• Innovation—Apple Computer, Google, FedEx
• Long-term investment value—CHS, Berkshire Hathaway, Exxon Mobil
• Use of corporate assets—Kinder Morgan, CHS, Exxon Mobil
• People management—FedEx, Procter & Gamble, Google
• Financial soundness—Exxon Mobil, CHS, Berkshire Hathaway
• Quality of products/services—FedEx, Walt Disney, Procter & Gamble
• Quality of management—Procter & Gamble, General Electric, Kinder Morgan

The top ten admired companies around the world were:

1. General Electric
2. Toyota Motor
3. Procter & Gamble
4. Johnson & Johnson
5. Apple Computer
6. Berkshire Hathaway
7. FedEx
8. Microsoft
9. BMW
10. PepsiCo

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