- Out of the Fortune 500, eight oil companies have the highest profits per worker, with Diamondback Energy earning an eye-watering $4.5 million per employee
- Of the Fortune 100 minus oil companies, Fannie Mae earns the most per employee, with Apple earning the most in tech, almost double Microsoft and Alphabet, and over double compared to Meta, respectively
- The average Fortune 500 company earns $180,000 profit per employee
At the Australian Financial Review Property Summit, multi-millionaire CEO Tim Gurner sparked global backlash after saying that “unemployment has to jump by 40-50 percent” and “we need to see pain in the economy” to reduce “arrogance in the employment market.”
But the comments have been met with responses pointing out that while company profits and productivity have largely risen, worker pay has climbed much slower while the cost-of-living crisis continues to bite households.
In response, B2B Marketplace DesignRush recently looked at the biggest U.S. companies by revenue, also known as the Fortune 500, and analyzed which earn the most and least profit per employee.
Fortune 500 Companies With The Highest And Lowest Profit Per Employee
Taking a list of the 500 largest U.S. companies by revenue, according to Fortune, each company was ranked according to the highest profit gained per employee.
Eight of the top ten are energy and crude oil production companies, which have seen record profits during the pandemic and cost-of-living crisis.
Companies with the highest profit per employee:
|
Company |
Annual profit |
Employees |
Profit per employee |
|
Diamondback Energy |
$4.4 billion |
972 |
$4.5 million |
|
Chesapeake Energy |
$4.9 billion |
1,200 |
$4.1 million |
|
Pioneer Natural Resources |
$7.8 billion |
2,076 |
$3.7 million |
|
Devon Energy |
$6 billion |
1,800 |
$3.3 million |
|
Coterra Energy |
$4 billion |
1,225 |
$3.3 million |
|
Continental Resources |
$4 billion |
1,404 |
$2.8 million |
|
EOG Resources |
$7.7 billion |
2,850 |
$2.7 million |
|
EQT |
$1.7 billion |
744 |
$2.4 million |
|
Marathon Oil |
$3.6 billion |
1,570 |
$2.3 million |
|
Moderna |
$8.3 billion |
3,900 |
$2.1 million |
Diamondback Energy Inc (NASDAQ:FANG) earns the most profit per employee in the U.S., with an eye-watering $4.5 million made for each of its 972 employees.
Five companies are based in Texas and three in Oklahoma, with EQT Corp (NYSE:EQT) in Pennsylvania and Moderna Inc (NASDAQ:MRNA) in Massachusetts.
The top ten are among the Fortune 500 companies earning the highest profits as a percentage of sales.
Data shows the average Fortune 500 company earns $180,000 profit per employee.
Companies With The Lowest Profit Per Employee
|
Company |
Annual profit |
Employees |
Profit per employee |
|
Performance Food Group |
$113 million |
34,825 |
$3,244 |
|
Goodyear Tire & Rubber |
$202 million |
74,000 |
$2,729 |
|
Salesforce |
$208 million |
79,390 |
$2,619 |
|
Lear |
$328 million |
168,700 |
$1,944 |
|
ABM Industries |
$230 million |
127,000 |
$1,811 |
|
GXO Logistics |
$197 million |
112,000 |
$1,758 |
|
Yum China Holdings |
$442 million |
275,000 |
$1,604 |
|
General Electric |
$225 million |
172,000 |
$1,308 |
|
American Airlines Group |
$127 million |
129,700 |
$979 |
|
Aramark |
$195 million |
273,875 |
$712 |
Of the 446 companies that made a profit for FY23, three earning the lowest profit per employee rank in the top 100 U.S. by annual revenue: General Electric Co (NYSE:GE), American Airlines Group Inc (NASDAQ:AAL), and Performance Food Group Co (NYSE:PFGC).
Fortune 100 Companies Earning The Highest Profit-Per-Employee
|
Company |
Annual profit |
Employees |
Profit per employee |
|
Fannie Mae |
$12.9 billion |
8,000 |
$1.6 million |
|
Freddie Mac |
$9.3 billion |
7,819 |
$1.2 million |
|
Apple |
$99.8 billion |
164,000 |
$608,554 |
|
American International Group |
$10.2 billion |
26,200 |
$392,213 |
|
Pfizer |
$31.3 billion |
83,000 |
$377,975 |
|
Microsoft |
$72.7 billion |
221,000 |
$329,131 |
|
Alphabet |
$59.9 billion |
190,234 |
$315,253 |
|
Meta Platforms |
$23.2 billion |
86,482 |
$268,263 |
|
Qualcomm |
$12.9 billion |
51,000 |
$253,647 |
|
AbbVie |
$11.8 billion |
50,000 |
$236,720 |
Among the Fortune 100 (oil production, energy, and pipeline companies removed), the Federal National Mortgage Association, also known as Fannie Mae, earns the highest profit per employee of $1.6 million.
The top two companies, Fannie Mae (OTCMKTS:FNMA) and Freddie Mac (OTCMKTS:FMCC), are government-sponsored.
Apple earns the highest profit per employee in the technology sector, almost double that of its closest competitors, Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL), and over double compared to Meta.
Tech companies swept the rankings, with five appearing in the top ten.
Pfizer, commonly known for developing COVID-19 vaccines, earns the most out of the pharmaceutical companies in the Fortune 100.
Gianluca Ferruggia, General Manager at DesignRush, commented on the findings: “At a time with mass layoffs, job uncertainty, and a tug-of-war between CEOs and workers, it is staggering to see the profits made by the highest-earning companies, with some making huge amounts per employee on payroll. It should be noted that other factors influence profit beyond employee efforts, such as global events, economic outlook, brand image, reputation, and marketing.
That is especially true considering the huge difference in energy and oil companies’ profits compared to the average. So, while profit per worker may not paint a full picture, it provides insight into the level of efficiency and productivity of these global brands during uncertain times.”
The study was conducted by DesignRush, which provides valuable data on relevant trends that help businesses make educated decisions coming from their years of experience in the B2B community.
