10 Most Powerful and Influential Companies In America

How can we determine if a company is one of the 10 most powerful and influential companies in America? On the one hand, assuming that money is an instrument of power, we can take companies based on their financial figures, like revenue, profit or market cap. Then there’s brand value, which affects a company’s sales, as it determines how customers perceive the company and whether they are willing to pay a higher price for its products. This is why companies invest in things like sustainability in order to boost their brand value.

Then there’s the number of employees, which determines a company’s size. In addition, companies with more employees have larger political influence, since job creation and wages are omnipresent on the agendas of most politicians. And speaking about politics, it’s also important to look at the top management and their political connections, since many companies try to lobby for certain laws and regulations that affect not only themselves and their companies, but also the country as a whole.

In addition, there are not-so-obvious factors that make a company very powerful and influential, even though it falls behind on the financial front. Take for example Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR). Its stock is down by 70% over the last three years and the company has been lagging in terms of user growth. Nevertheless, the social media platform played a crucial role in a number of political events in countries like Moldova, Ukraine, Tunisia, and Egypt, which led to a removal from power of dictators and their regimes. Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) still remains the most important platform for activists to spread their message and stage protests. At the same time, it’s a widely-used instrument by politicians, celebrities and investors, who use it to communicate with the outside world. There are many examples of politicians using Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) to attack each other or a business, often resulting in a decline of a company’s stock price.

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Since information is considered to be the most powerful tool in the 21st century, some companies are powerful because they affect the way people see information and what information they choose to see. Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL)‘s Google is the most popular search platform in the world and its Google News segment has an effect on what news people read. Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB)‘s impact on the U.S. election has spurred many discussions and even though Mark Zuckerberg downplayed the social media platform’s impact, political campaigns have used the platform to target voters for years and after the election, a crackdown on fake news was launched not only by Facebook, but across many websites.

With this in mind, we have compiled a list of the 10 most powerful and influential companies in America. To gather the list, we used Forbes‘ list of the world’s most valuable brands, as well as Business Insider‘s 2015 Most Powerful Companies in America list. We also included companies from Foreign Policy‘s analysis of 25 companies that are more powerful than many countries. Twitter was excluded from the list, because of its small size and the fact that the most important events that had Twitter as a key instrument took place overseas. The companies in the list are sorted based on their market capitalization.

10. Time Warner Inc (NYSE:TWX)

Market Cap: $76 billion

We are starting our list of most powerful and influential companies in America with Time Warner Inc (NYSE:TWX) that may be not the largest in terms of market cap, and it doesn’t have the highest revenue compared to many other companies that made the list. However, it is one of the largest entertainment companies and owns a significant amount of popular assets, one of the most influential being CNN, a news network that has often attacked often by the Trump administration. Time Warner Inc (NYSE:TWX) is currently in the process of being acquired by AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T), signaling telecom companies’ interest in the content industry. Last year, Time Warner Inc (NYSE:TWX) had revenue of $29.30 billion and it currently employs approximately 24,800 people.

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9. Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS)

Market Cap: $98 billion

Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS) ranks 9th in our list of most powerful and influential companies in America. It may be lagging behind some of its peers in the banking sector, like JPMorgan and Wells Fargo. However, over the years, Goldman Sachs has been very close to the U.S. government. Among the bank’s alumni that served in key positions in previous administrations are Henry Paulson and Robert Rubin, who served as Secretary of the Treasury between 2006 and 2009, and between 1995 and 1999, respectively. The Trump administration has also opened its doors to former Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS) employees. Former Goldman Sachs partner Steven Mnuchin was appointed by Trump as the new Secretary of the Treasury, while Steve Bannon, Trump’s chief strategist, also worked at Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS), having left as the company’s Vice President. Goldman Sachs is also one of the 11 Best Finance Companies to Work For.

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8. Wal-Mart Stores Inc (NYSE:WMT)

Market Cap: $218 billion

With a market cap of $218 billion and sales of $482.1 billion registered last year, Wal-Mart Stores Inc (NYSE:WMT) is the largest retailer in the world. In turn, this makes the giant retailer the largest employer in the world, having over 2.20 million employees.

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7. General Electric Company (NYSE:GE)

Market Cap: $254 billion

Up next in our list of most powerful and influential companies in America is General Electric Company (NYSE:GE) that had revenue of $123.70 billion last year and employs around 295,000 people worldwide, including 104,000 in the U.S. The company is involved in a wide range of businesses, such as power, water, oil & gas, financial services, life sciences, pharmaceutical, automotive, and engineering. General Electric Company (NYSE:GE) recently announced plans to merge its oil & gas business with Baker Hughes, in a deal that will create a $32 billion oilfield services giant. In addition, according to the Center for Responsive Politics’ website, General Electric Company (NYSE:GE) is one of the top spenders on lobbying, having spent $345.75 million between 1998 and 2016.

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6. Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM)

Market Cap: $335 billion

Oil is one of the powers that rule the world and Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) is one of the leaders in the sector. With revenue of $218.61 billion, Exxon is one of the largest companies, trailing only Chinese giants like Sinopec, China National Petroleum Corporation and PetroChina. Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) also spent around $232.20 million on lobbying between 1998 and 2016, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. The company is one of the most powerful not just in the U.S., but in many countries, some of which it arguably has a more powerful foreign impact on than the State Department, as Steve Coll wrote in The New Yorker. Well, and we obviously can’t ignore the fact that former Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson is the current Secretary of State in the Trump administration (“drain the swamp”, huh?).

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5. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Market Cap: $345 billion

We are continuing our list of most powerful and influential companies in America with Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) that is the largest pharmaceutical company in the world, with sales of $71.89 billion, of which $37.81 billion were generated in the U.S. alone last year.

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4. Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB)

Market Cap: $403 billion

Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) ranks 4th in our list of most powerful and influential companies in America. It operates the largest social media platform in the world. In addition, it owns the two largest messaging services in the world: WhatsApp and Messenger, as well as photo-sharing service Instagram. The wide popularity of Facebook allows it to play a crucial role in many political and social events in a country, as was proven during the latest Presidential elections. The company has come under fire alongside other media companies in connection with the widespread problem of fake news stories and is currently implementing measures to prevent them. Nevertheless, Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) has reshaped the way people access news and other information and is a key instrument of communication used by politicians and celebrities. Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB)’s brand is worth $52.6 billion according to Forbes, making it one of the most valuable in the world.

3. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)

Market Cap: $406 billion

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) ranks 3rd in our list of most powerful and influential companies in America. It has emerged as one of the most popular retailers in the world, outrunning many more well-established brick-and-mortar companies. The eCommerce giant processes millions of transactions per day and is expanding into other businesses, such as transportation and shipping. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)’s large userbase also helped it get involved in content delivery, with its Prime Video platform having recently been made available to a majority of countries on earth. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) had revenue of $136 billion in 2016 and employs 341,400 people both full- and part-time as of the end of last year.

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2. Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL)

Market Cap: $593 billion

Aside from being one of the largest companies in terms of market cap, it also owns Google, the most popular search platform and the second most-valuable brand, with a value of $82.50 billion. As the most popular search platform, Google influences how people access information and what news they read. Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) also owns YouTube, the largest online video platform, and is involved in a number of other projects involving robotics, self-driving vehicles, and smart home technology, among others.

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1. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Market Cap: $730 billion

Finally, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is the largest company in terms of market cap and its namesake brand is the most valuable in the world, with a value estimated at $154.10 billion. With the introduction of the iPhone in 2007, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) reshaped the smartphone segment, while its devices, aside from being among the most popular, are also among the most innovative and have had a large impact on design and technology trends across their markets.

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That wraps up the list of the 10 most powerful and influential companies in America. Do you agree with Apple being on top? Or is its influence overstated compared to a company like Facebook? Let our readers know your thoughts in the comments.

Disclosure: None