The Fortune 500 - Creating and Servicing Suburban Sprawl?

by Judd Wiley
May 29th, 2008, 5:39 pm

Image: Wikipedia

BACKGROUND

Yesterday, a reader named “Read Much?” left the following comment:

Excluding the fantasy wealth generating segments, the US economy fundamentally IS the creation and servicing of suburban sprawl. That’s what we make in the US today.

Read Much? provided no facts, figures, or statistics. So I responded:

Since you’re too lazy to provide your own evidence to back up your statements, I’m going to do it for you. I’m going to go through all of the Fortune 500 companies for 2008 and see if you’re right that “the US economy fundamentally IS the creation and servicing of suburban sprawl.” (For those of you who don’t know the definition of the Fortune 500, it’s an annual list compiled and published by Fortune magazine that ranks the top 500 American public corporations as measured by their gross revenue.)

Here’s how it’s going to work. I’m going to list each company, list what it does, list its gross revenue, and give the official Commuter Outrage “Knee Jerk Reaction,” i.e. in 2 seconds or less I will determine whether or not the company’s purpose is “the creation and servicing of suburban sprawl.” I’ll do the math, giving each company a percentage of the whole. I will not skew the results toward my view, and will put the whole thing up in a fresh post so you can review and challenge any knee jerk reactions that you don’t agree with.

As promised, below is the official Commuter Outrage analysis of the Fortune 500 for 2008.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Read Much? is completely wrong.

ANALYSIS

Of the Fortune 500 companies, representing $10,601,507 million in total revenues:

  • The main purpose of 167 companies (33%), representing $3,855,742 million in total revenues (36%), is directly related to “creating” or “servicing” suburban sprawl.
  • However, the main purpose of the remaining 333 companies (67%), representing $6,745,765 million in total revenues (64%), is not directly related to “creating” or “servicing” suburban sprawl.

If you factor out the “fantasy wealth generating segments” (which is ridiculous, but I’ll play along) … Of the remaining Fortune 456 (excluding 44 financial companies), representing $9,157,856 million in total revenues:

  • The main purpose of 167 companies (33%), representing $3,855,742 million in total revenues (36%), is directly related to “creating” or “servicing” suburban sprawl.
  • However, the main purpose of the remaining (63%), representing $5,302,114 million in total revenues (58%), is not directly related to “creating” or “servicing” suburban sprawl.

My methodology is, admittedly, very very blunt. For instance, I’m only looking at the 500 highest grossing U.S. companies, not the entire Wilshire 5000. I’m not drilling deep into the revenue of each company, categorizing and apportioning each dollar to suburban and urban locales. And I’m not entertaining historical-philosophical matters such as, “Didn’t Coca-Cola play a large role in the creating the suburbs?”

So to make up for these glaring defects in my methodology, I went out of my way to skew the results of my brief analysis in the direction of Read Much?’s claim. For example, many of these companies clearly play a big role in “creating” and “servicing” urban areas … homebuilders, property insurance firms, energy companies, etc. I agree, but to make my point I threw all of these into the “creating or servicing suburban sprawl” category. This is the beauty of the knee jerk reaction.

Thus, I find it hilarious that even after skewing the results as far as possible toward Read Much?’s fantastically vague statement and excluding all financial companies (again, ridiculous), the fact remains that a significant majority of the Fortune 500 do not primarily exist for “creating” or “servicing” suburban sprawl.

Let’s go even further. Let’s say that I’ve miscategorized 5% of these companies. This is entirely possible. Take Safeway, for instance. My knee jerk reaction was … No! Safeway’s primary role isn’t to “service” suburban sprawl. Why? Because Safeway’s are all over big cities! My analysis might very well be incorrect. But even if I’ve miscategorized 5% of the Fortune 500, I’m still right. A majority of the Fortune 500 are doing other things.

Moreover, if we take a closer look at Read Much’s very very bold statements … “The US economy fundamentally IS the creation and servicing of suburban sprawl” … “That’s what we make in the US today” … Shouldn’t such complete and total confidence require more than a simple 51% majority? Shouldn’t we expect 70% or 80% or even 90%? Shouldn’t the evidence be so overwhelming that we throw up our hands in capitulation?

Or maybe we shouldn’t expect anything, since Read Much? never took the time to define any of his terms, let alone clarify his larger point. What does he mean by “the US economy?” What does his usage of “fundamentally” denote?  What does “creating and servicing” include and exclude? What’s his definition of “suburban sprawl”?

DATA

Format - Fortune 500 ranking / Company name / Revenue ($ millions) / Company classification / Knee jerk reaction: Is the main purpose of this company “creating” or “servicing” suburban sprawl? (Yes/No)

  1. Wal-Mart Stores - 378,799.00 - General Merchandisers - Yes
  2. Exxon Mobil - 372,824.00 - Petroleum Refining - Yes
  3. Chevron - 210,783.00 - Petroleum Refining - Yes
  4. General Motors - 182,347.00 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  5. ConocoPhillips - 178,558.00 - Petroleum Refining - Yes
  6. General Electric - 176,656.00 - Diversified Financials - No
  7. Ford Motor - 172,468.00 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  8. Citigroup - 159,229.00 - Commercial Banks - No
  9. Bank of America Corp. - 119,190.00 - Commercial Banks - No
  10. AT&T - 118,928.00 - Telecommunications - No
  11. Berkshire Hathaway - 118,245.00 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  12. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. - 116,353.00 - Commercial Banks - No
  13. American International Group - 110,064.00 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  14. Hewlett-Packard - 104,286.00 - Computers, Office Equipment - No
  15. International Business Machines - 98,786.00 - Information Technology Services - No
  16. Valero Energy - 96,758.00 - Petroleum Refining - Yes
  17. Verizon Communications - 93,775.00 - Telecommunications - No
  18. McKesson - 93,574.00 - Wholesalers: Health Care - No
  19. Cardinal Health - 88,363.90 - Wholesalers: Health Care - No
  20. Goldman Sachs Group - 87,968.00 - Securities - No
  21. Morgan Stanley - 87,879.00 Securities - No
  22. Home Depot - 84,740.00 - Specialty Retailers - Yes
  23. Procter & Gamble - 76,476.00 - Household and Personal Products - No
  24. CVS Caremark - 76,329.50 - Food and Drug Stores - No
  25. UnitedHealth Group - 75,431.00 - Health Care: Insurance and Managed Care - No
  26. Kroger - 0,234.70 - Food and Drug Stores - No
  27. Boeing - 66,387.00 - Aerospace and Defense - No
  28. AmerisourceBergen - 66,074.30 - Wholesalers: Health Care - No
  29. Costco Wholesale - 64,400.20 - Specialty Retailers - Yes
  30. Merrill Lynch - 64,217.00 - Securities - No
  31. Target - 63,367.00 - General Merchandisers - Yes
  32. State Farm Insurance Cos. - 61,611.60 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (mutual) - Yes
  33. WellPoint - 61,134.30 - Health Care: Insurance and Managed Care - No
  34. Dell - 61,133.00 - Computers, Office Equipment - No
  35. Johnson & Johnson - 61,095.00 - Pharmaceuticals - No
  36. Marathon Oil - 60,044.00 - Petroleum Refining - Yes
  37. Lehman Brothers Holdings - 59,003.00 - Securities - No
  38. Wachovia Corp. - 55,528.00 - Commercial Banks - No
  39. United Technologies - 54,759.00 - Aerospace and Defense - No
  40. Walgreen - 53,762.00 - Food and Drug Stores - No
  41. Wells Fargo - 53,593.00 - Commercial Banks - No
  42. Dow Chemical - 3,513.00 - Chemicals - No
  43. MetLife - 53,150.00 - Insurance: Life, Health (stock) - No
  44. Microsoft - 51,122.00 - Computer Software - No
  45. Sears Holdings - 50,703.00 - General Merchandisers - No
  46. United Parcel Service - 49,692.00 - Mail, Package and Freight Delivery - No
  47. Pfizer - 48,418.00 - Pharmaceuticals - No
  48. Lowe’s - 48,283.00 - Specialty Retailers - Yes
  49. Time Warner - 46,615.00 - Entertainment - No
  50. Caterpillar - 44,958.00 - Industrial and Farm Equipment - No
  51. Medco Health Solutions - 44,506.20 - Health Care: Pharmacy and Other Services - No
  52. Archer Daniels Midland - 44,018.00 - Food Production - No
  53. Fannie Mae - 43,355.00 - Diversified Financials - No
  54. Freddie Mac - 43,104.00 - Diversified Financials - No
  55. Safeway - 42,286.00 - Food and Drug Stores - No
  56. Sunoco - 42,101.00 - Petroleum Refining - Yes
  57. Lockheed Martin - 41,862.00 - Aerospace and Defense - No
  58. Sprint Nextel - 40,146.00 - Telecommunications - No
  59. PepsiCo - 39,474.00 - Food Consumer Products - No
  60. Intel - 38,334.00 - Semiconductors and Other Electronic Components - No
  61. Altria Group - 38,051.00 - Tobacco - No
  62. Supervalu - 37,406.00 - Food and Drug Stores - No
  63. Kraft Foods - 37,241.00 - Food Consumer Products - No
  64. Allstate - 36,769.00 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  65. Motorola - 36,622.00 - Network and Other Communications Equipment - No
  66. Best Buy - 35,934.00 - Specialty Retailers - No
  67. Walt Disney - 35,882.00 - Entertainment - No
  68. FedEx - 35,214.00 - Mail, Package and Freight Delivery - No
  69. Ingram Micro - 35,047.10 - Wholesalers: Electronics and Office Equipment - No
  70. Sysco - 35,042.10 - Wholesalers: Food and Grocery - No
  71. Cisco Systems - 34,922.00 - Network and Other Communications Equipment - No
  72. Johnson Controls - 34,678.00 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  73. Honeywell International - 34,589.00 - Aerospace and Defense - No
  74. Prudential Financial - 34,401.00 - Insurance: Life, Health (stock) - No
  75. American Express - 32,316.00 - Diversified Financials - No
  76. Northrop Grumman - 32,032.00 - Aerospace and Defense - No
  77. Hess - 31,924.00 - Petroleum Refining - Yes
  78. GMAC - 31,490.00 Diversified Financials - No
  79. Comcast - 30,895.00 - Telecommunications - No
  80. Alcoa - 30,748.00 - Metals - No
  81. DuPont - 30,653.00 - Chemicals - No
  82. New York Life Insurance - 29,279.60 - Insurance: Life, Health (mutual) - No
  83. Coca-Cola - 28,857.00 - Beverages - No
  84. News Corp. - 28,655.00 - Entertainment - No
  85. Aetna - 27,599.60 - Health Care: Insurance and Managed Care - No
  86. TIAA-CREF - 27,526.00 - Insurance: Life, Health (mutual) - No
  87. General Dynamics - 27,294.00 - Aerospace and Defense - No
  88. Tyson Foods - 26,900.00 - Food Production - No
  89. HCA - 26,858.00 - Health Care: Medical Facilities - No
  90. Enterprise GP Holdings - 26,713.80 - Pipelines - Yes
  91. Macy’s - 26,340.00 - General Merchandisers - No
  92. Delphi - 26,160.00 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  93. Travelers Cos. - 26,017.00 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  94. Liberty Mutual Insurance Group - 25,961.00 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  95. Hartford Financial Services - 25,916.00 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  96. Abbott Laboratories - 25,914.20 - Pharmaceuticals - No
  97. Washington Mutual - 25,531.00 - Savings Institutions - No
  98. Humana - 25,290.00 - Health Care: Insurance and Managed Care - No
  99. Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance - 25,268.20 - Insurance: Life, Health (mutual) - No
  100. 3M - 24,462.00 - Miscellaneous - No
  101. Merck - 24,197.70 - Pharmaceuticals - No
  102. Deere - 24,082.20 - Industrial and Farm Equipment - No
  103. Apple - 24,006.00 - Computers, Office Equipment - No
  104. Countrywide Financial - 23,442.10 - Diversified Financials - No
  105. Tech Data - 23,423.10 - Wholesalers: Electronics and Office Equipment - No
  106. McDonald’s - 23,230.70 - Food Services - No
  107. Publix Super Markets - 23,193.60 - Food and Drug Stores - No
  108. Nationwide - 22,962.00 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  109. AMR - 22,935.00 - Airlines - No
  110. Northwestern Mutual - 22,596.60 - Insurance: Life, Health (mutual) - No
  111. Emerson Electric - 22,572.00 - Electronics, Electrical Equipment - No
  112. Raytheon - 22,426.00 - Aerospace and Defense - No
  113. Wyeth - 22,399.80 - Pharmaceuticals - No
  114. International Paper - 22,284.00 - Forest and Paper Products - No
  115. Electronic Data Systems - 22,135.00 - Information Technology Services - No
  116. Tesoro - 21,675.00 - Petroleum Refining - Yes
  117. Constellation Energy - 21,193.20 - Energy - Yes
  118. Coca-Cola Enterprises - 20,936.00 - Beverages - No
  119. Goodyear Tire & Rubber - 20,538.00 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  120. Manpower - 20,500.30 - Temporary Help - No
  121. Plains All American Pipeline - 20,394.00 - Pipelines - Yes
  122. U.S. Bancorp - 20,308.00 - Commercial Banks - No
  123. Occidental Petroleum - 20,206.00 - Mining, Crude-Oil Production - Yes
  124. UAL - 20,143.00 - Airlines - No
  125. Bristol-Myers Squibb - 19,977.00 - Pharmaceuticals - No
  126. J.C. Penney - 19,860.00 - General Merchandisers - No
  127. Whirlpool - 19,451.00 - Electronics, Electrical Equipment - No
  128. Staples - 19,372.70 - Specialty Retailers - No
  129. Delta Air Lines - 19,154.00 - Airlines - No
  130. Capital One Financial - 18,965.50 - Commercial Banks - No
  131. Exelon - 18,925.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  132. TJX - 18,647.10 - Specialty Retailers - No
  133. Eli Lilly - 18,633.50 - Pharmaceuticals - No
  134. Murphy Oil - 18,439.10 - Petroleum Refining - Yes
  135. Express Scripts - 18,377.80 - Health Care: Pharmacy and Other Services - No
  136. Kimberly-Clark - 18,266.00 - Household and Personal Products - No
  137. Oracle - 17,996.00 - Computer Software - No
  138. AutoNation - 17,950.60 - Automotive Retailing, Services - Yes
  139. Loews - 17,920.00 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  140. Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold - 17,876.00 - Mining, Crude-Oil Production - Yes
  141. Cigna - 17,623.00 - Health Care: Insurance and Managed Care - No
  142. Rite Aid - 17,507.70 - Food and Drug Stores - No
  143. DirecTV Group - 17,246.00 Telecommunications - No
  144. Xerox - 17,228.00 - Computers, Office Equipment - No
  145. CHS - 17,216.00 - Wholesalers: Food and Grocery - No
  146. United States Steel - 16,873.00 - Metals - No
  147. Weyerhaeuser - 16,871.00 - Forest and Paper Products - No
  148. Fluor - 16,691.00 - Engineering, Construction - Yes
  149. Anheuser-Busch - 16,685.70 - Beverages - No
  150. Google - 16,594.00 - Internet Services and Retailing - No
  151. Nucor - 16,593.00 - Metals - No
  152. Kohl’s - 16,473.70 - General Merchandisers - No
  153. Nike - 16,325.90 - Apparel - No
  154. Union Pacific - 16,283.00 - Railroads - Yes
  155. Illinois Tool Works - 16,278.90 - Industrial and Farm Equipment - No
  156. Bear Stearns - 16,151.00 - Securities - No
  157. Lear - 15,995.00 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  158. Arrow Electronics - 15,985.00 - Wholesalers: Electronics and Office Equipment - No
  159. Anadarko Petroleum - 15,916.00 - Mining, Crude-Oil Production - Yes
  160. Burlington Northern Santa Fe - 15,802.00 - Railroads - Yes
  161. Dominion Resources - 15,790.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  162. Gap - 15,779.00 - Specialty Retailers - No
  163. Avnet - 15,681.10 - Wholesalers: Electronics and Office Equipment - No
  164. Office Depot - 15,527.50 - Specialty Retailers - No
  165. AFLAC - 15,393.00 - Insurance: Life, Health (stock) - No
  166. Southern - 15,353.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  167. Halliburton - 15,264.00 - Oil and Gas Equipment, Services - Yes
  168. FPL Group - 15,263.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  169. Paccar - 15,221.70 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  170. Computer Sciences - 14,856.60 - Information Technology Services - No
  171. Amazon.com - 14,835.00 - Internet Services and Retailing - No
  172. Bank of New York Mellon Corp. - 14,798.00 - Commercial Banks - No
  173. Amgen - 14,771.00 - Pharmaceuticals - No
  174. TRW Automotive Holdings - 14,702.00 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  175. Progressive - 14,686.80 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  176. United Services Automobile Assn. - 14,417.90 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  177. Centex - 14,292.70 - Homebuilders - Yes
  178. Continental Airlines - 14,232.00 - Airlines - No
  179. Health Net - 14,108.30 - Health Care: Insurance and Managed Care - No
  180. Chubb - 14,107.00 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  181. CBS - 14,072.90 - Entertainment - No
  182. L-3 Communications - 13,960.50 - Aerospace and Defense - No
  183. AES - 13,896.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  184. Sun Microsystems - 13,873.00 - Computers, Office Equipment No
  185. Texas Instruments - 13,835.00 - Semiconductors and Other Electronic Components - No
  186. Colgate-Palmolive - 13,789.70 - Household and Personal Products - No
  187. Qwest Communications - 13,778.00 - Telecommunications - No
  188. World Fuel Services - 13,729.60 - Wholesalers: Diversified - Yes
  189. Toys ‘R’ Us - 13,646.00 - Specialty Retailers - No
  190. Pepsi Bottling - 13,591.00 - Beverages - No
  191. Viacom - 13,495.50 - Entertainment - No
  192. Oneok - 13,477.40 - Energy - Yes
  193. SunTrust Banks - 13,464.60 - Commercial Banks - No
  194. Penske Automotive Group - 13,448.60 - Automotive Retailing, Services - Yes
  195. Consolidated Edison - 13,388.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  196. American Electric Power - 13,380.00 - Energy - Yes
  197. Marriott International - 13,342.00 - Hotels, Casinos, Resorts - No
  198. Public Service Enterprise Group - 13,336.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  199. Waste Management - 13,310.00 - Waste Management - Yes
  200. PG&E Corp. - 13,237.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  201. EMC - 13,230.20 - Computer Peripherals - No
  202. Textron - 13,225.00 - Aerospace and Defense - No
  203. Sara Lee - 13,179.00 - Food Consumer Products - No
  204. Duke Energy - 13,134.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  205. Edison International - 13,113.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  206. Cummins - 13,048.00 - Industrial and Farm Equipment - No
  207. Eaton - 13,033.00 - Industrial and Farm Equipment - No
  208. Williams - 12,994.00 - Energy - Yes
  209. FirstEnergy - 12,802.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  210. ConAgra Foods - 12,755.80 - Food Consumer Products - No
  211. Omnicom Group - 12,694.00 - Advertising, Marketing - No
  212. Schering-Plough - 12,690.00 - Pharmaceuticals - No
  213. Northwest Airlines - 12,528.00 - Airlines - No
  214. General Mills - 12,442.00 - Food Consumer Products - No
  215. Circuit City Stores - 12,429.80 - Specialty Retailers - No
  216. Aramark - 12,384.30 - Diversified Outsourcing Services - No
  217. PPG Industries - 12,299.00 - Chemicals - No
  218. Medtronic 12,299.00 - Medical Products and Equipment - No
  219. Jabil Circuit - 12,290.60 - Semiconductors and Other Electronic Components - No
  220. Marsh & McLennan - 12,148.00 - Diversified Financials - No
  221. Devon Energy - 12,143.00 - Mining, Crude-Oil Production - Yes
  222. Smithfield Foods - 11,932.60 - Food Production - No
  223. Masco - 11,833.00 - Home Equipment, Furnishings - Yes
  224. Dean Foods - 11,821.90 - Food Consumer Products - No
  225. State Street Corp - 11,818.00 - Commercial Banks - No
  226. National City Corp. - 11,791.30 - Commercial Banks - No
  227. Kellogg - 11,776.00 - Food Consumer Products - No
  228. US Airways Group - 11,700.00 - Airlines - No
  229. R.R. Donnelley & Sons - 11,587.10 - Publishing, Printing - No
  230. Knight - 11,505.70 - Pipelines - Yes
  231. Entergy - 11,484.40 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  232. Sempra Energy - 11,448.00 - Insurance: Life, Health (stock) - No
  233. Genworth Financial - 11,443.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  234. Visteon - 11,316.00 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  235. D.R. Horton - 11,296.50 - Homebuilders - Yes
  236. Baxter International - 11,263.00 - Medical Products and Equipment - No
  237. Reliant Energy - 11,208.70 - Energy - Yes
  238. Eastman Kodak - 11,203.00 - Scientific, Photographic, and Control Equipment - No
  239. Danaher - 11,107.10 - Scientific, Photographic, and Control Equipment - No
  240. DISH Network - 11,090.40 - Telecommunications - No
  241. Trane - 10,915.10 - Industrial and Farm Equipment - No
  242. Principal Financial 10,906.80 - Insurance: Life, Health (stock) - No
  243. Genuine Parts - 10,843.20 - Wholesalers: Diversified - Yes
  244. Harrah’s Entertainment - 10,825.40 - Hotels, Casinos, Resorts - No
  245. Regions Financial - 10,753.80 - Commercial Banks - No
  246. Lincoln National - 10,738.00 - Insurance: Life, Health (stock) - No
  247. Parker Hannifin - 10,718.10 - Industrial and Farm Equipment - No
  248. Progress Energy - 10,714.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  249. Huntsman 10,713.40 - Chemicals - No
  250. BB&T Corp. - 10,668.00 - Commercial Banks - No
  251. Unum Group - 10,567.10 - Insurance: Life, Health (stock) - No
  252. Baker Hughes - 10,428.20 - Oil and Gas Equipment, Services - Yes
  253. Yum Brands - 10,416.00 - Food Services - No
  254. Integrys Energy Group - 10,408.10 - Energy - Yes
  255. Sanmina-SCI - 10,384.30 - Semiconductors and Other Electronic Components - No
  256. Lennar - 10,186.80 - Homebuilders - Yes
  257. Limited Brands - 10,134.20 - Specialty Retailers - No
  258. Air Products & Chemicals - 10,125.00 - Chemicals - No
  259. Guardian Life Ins. Co. of America - 10,070.70 - Insurance: Life, Health (mutual) - No
  260. Xcel Energy - 10,034.20 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  261. CSX - 10,030.00 - Railroads - Yes
  262. Apache - 9,977.90 - Mining, Crude-Oil Production - Yes
  263. Aon - 9,973.00 - Diversified Financials - No
  264. PNC Financial Services Group - 9,956.00 - Commercial Banks - No
  265. Avon Products - 9,938.70 - Household and Personal Products - No
  266. Coventry Health Care - 9,879.50 - Health Care: Insurance and Managed Care - No
  267. Southwest Airlines - 9,861.00 - Airlines - No
  268. National Oilwell Varco - 9,789.00 - Oil and Gas Equipment, Services - Yes
  269. Thermo Fisher Scientific - 9,746.40 - Scientific, Photographic, and Control Equipment - No
  270. Applied Materials - 9,734.90 - Semiconductors and Other Electronic Components - No
  271. CenterPoint Energy - 9,623.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  272. YRC Worldwide - 9,621.30 - Trucking, Truck Leasing - Yes
  273. DTE Energy - 9,575.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  274. Dollar General - 9,495.20 - General Merchandisers - No
  275. Liberty Media - 9,482.00 - Internet Services and Retailing - No
  276. Norfolk Southern - 9,432.00 - Railroads - Yes
  277. Starbucks - 9,411.50 - Food Services - No
  278. Praxair - 9,402.00 - Chemicals - No
  279. Pepco Holdings - 9,366.40 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  280. Tenet Healthcare - 9,358.00 - Health Care: Medical Facilities - No
  281. Automatic Data Processing - 9,318.70 - Payroll Services - No
  282. Pulte Homes - 9,263.10 - Homebuilders - Yes
  283. Dana Holding - 9,216.00 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  284. KBR - 9,194.00 - Engineering, Construction - Yes
  285. ITT - 9,181.10 - Industrial and Farm Equipment - No
  286. SLM - 9,171.10 - Diversified Financials - No
  287. Terex - 9,137.70 - Industrial and Farm Equipment - No
  288. OfficeMax - 9,082.00 - Specialty Retailers - No
  289. SAIC - 9,041.00 - Information Technology Services - No
  290. Reynolds American - 9,023.00 - Tobacco - No
  291. BJ’s Wholesale Club - 9,005.00 - Specialty Retailers - Yes
  292. Liberty Global - 9,003.30 - Telecommunications - No
  293. H.J. Heinz - 9,001.60 - Food Consumer Products - No
  294. Land O’Lakes - 8,924.90 - Food Consumer Products - No
  295. Rohm & Haas - 8,911.00 - Chemicals - No
  296. Ameriprise Financial - 8,909.00 - Diversified Financials - No
  297. Qualcomm 8,871.00 Network and Other Communications Equipment - No
  298. Sonic Automotive - 8,849.10 - Automotive Retailing, Services - Yes
  299. Nordstrom - 8,828.00 - General Merchandisers - No
  300. Alltel - 8,811.30 - Telecommunications - No
  301. ArvinMeritor - 8,778.00 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  302. Smith International - 8,764.30 - Oil and Gas Equipment, Services - Yes
  303. Commercial Metals - 8,751.20 - Metals - No
  304. Hertz Global Holdings - 8,685.60 - Automotive Retailing, Services - Yes
  305. Monsanto - 8,607.00 - Chemicals - No
  306. CIT Group - 8,605.00 - Diversified Financials - No
  307. Fifth Third Bancorp - 8,494.00 - Commercial Banks - No
  308. Jacobs Engineering Group - 8,474.00 - Engineering, Construction - Yes
  309. Assurant - 8,453.50 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  310. Boston Scientific - 8,357.00 - Medical Products and Equipment - No
  311. Fortune Brands - 8,291.40 - Home Equipment, Furnishings - Yes
  312. First American Corp. - 8,195.60 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  313. Virgin Media - 8,152.50 - Telecommunications - No
  314. Owens-Illinois - 8,134.10 - Packaging, Containers - No
  315. First Data - 8,051.40 - Financial Data Services - No
  316. Sherwin-Williams - 8,005.30 - Chemicals - No
  317. Energy Future Holdings - 7,992.00 - Energy - Yes
  318. Calpine - 7,970.00 - Energy - Yes
  319. NiSource - 7,941.50 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  320. Campbell Soup - 7,883.00 - Food Consumer Products - No
  321. KeyCorp - 7,873.00 - Commercial Banks - No
  322. Ashland - 7,834.00 - Chemicals - No
  323. MGM Mirage - 7,820.30 - Hotels, Casinos, Resorts - No
  324. Chesapeake Energy - 7,800.00 - Mining, Crude-Oil Production - Yes
  325. Crown Holdings - 7,727.00 - Packaging, Containers - No
  326. eBay - 7,672.30 - Internet Services and Retailing - No
  327. Pilgrim’s Pride - 7,598.60 - Food Production - No
  328. Mohawk Industries 7,586.00 Miscellaneous - No
  329. Ameren - 7,546.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  330. Community Health Systems - 7,545.20 - Health Care: Medical Facilities - No
  331. Dover - 7,487.20 - Industrial and Farm Equipment - No
  332. Gannett - 7,480.50 - Publishing, Printing - No
  333. CarMax - 7,465.70 - Automotive Retailing, Services - Yes
  334. Smurfit-Stone Container - 7,420.00 - Packaging, Containers - No
  335. VF - 7,415.50 - Apparel - No
  336. Ball - 7,389.70 - Packaging, Containers - No
  337. Eastman Chemical - 7,372.00 - Chemicals - No
  338. Dillard’s - 7,370.80 - General Merchandisers - No
  339. Clear Channel Communications - 7,363.50 - Entertainment - No
  340. KB Home - 7,328.40 - Homebuilders - Yes
  341. C.H. Robinson Worldwide - 7,316.20 - Transportation and Logistics - Yes
  342. Western Refining - 7,305.00 - Petroleum Refining - Yes
  343. Enbridge Energy Partners - 7,282.60 - Pipelines - Yes
  344. Targa Resources - 7,269.70 - Pipelines - Yes
  345. Reliance Steel & Aluminum - 7,265.60 - Wholesalers: Diversified - No
  346. PPL - 7,245.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  347. Winn-Dixie Stores - 7,225.30 - Food and Drug Stores - No
  348. GameStop - 7,094.00 - Specialty Retailers - No
  349. Estee Lauder - 7,037.50 - Household and Personal Products - No
  350. Synnex - 7,004.10 - Wholesalers: Electronics and Office Equipment - No
  351. AK Steel Holding -7,003.00 - Metals - No
  352. American Family Insurance Group - 6,969.40 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  353. Yahoo - 6,969.30 - Internet Services and Retailing - No
  354. Dole Food - 6,944.60 - Food Consumer Products - No
  355. Federal-Mogul - 6,913.90 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  356. MeadWestvaco - 6,906.00 - Packaging, Containers - No
  357. Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea - 6,850.30 - Food and Drug Stores - No
  358. Family Dollar Stores - 6,834.30 - General Merchandisers - No
  359. AGCO - 6,828.10 - Industrial and Farm Equipment - No
  360. Owens & Minor - 6,800.50 - Wholesalers: Health Care - No
  361. Energy Transfer Equity - 6,792.00 - Pipelines - Yes
  362. McGraw-Hill - 6,772.30 - Publishing, Printing - No
  363. Autoliv - 6,769.00 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  364. Global Partners - 6,757.80 - Energy - Yes
  365. Quest Diagnostics -6,704.90 - Health Care: Pharmacy and Other Services - No
  366. CMS Energy - 6,699.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  367. Celanese - 6,641.00 - Chemicals - No
  368. Bed Bath & Beyond - 6,617.40 - Specialty Retailers - No
  369. Whole Foods Market - 6,591.80 - Food and Drug Stores - No
  370. IAC/InterActiveCorp - 6,566.10 - Internet Services and Retailing - No
  371. Ryder System - 6,566.00 - Trucking, Truck Leasing - Yes
  372. Black & Decker - 6,563.20 - Industrial and Farm Equipment - No
  373. Interpublic Group - 6,554.20 - Advertising, Marketing - No
  374. Cablevision Systems - 6,538.40 - Telecommunications - No
  375. Goodrich - 6,535.80 - Aerospace and Defense - No
  376. Aleris International - 6,528.50 - Metals - No
  377. W.W. Grainger - 6,418.00 - Wholesalers: Diversified - No
  378. Newell Rubbermaid - 6,410.90 - Home Equipment, Furnishings - Yes
  379. Group 1 Automotive - 6,393.00 - Automotive Retailing, Services - Yes
  380. Becton Dickinson - 6,392.80 - Medical Products and Equipment - No
  381. Embarq - 6,365.00 - Telecommunications - No
  382. Avery Dennison - 6,307.80 - Chemicals - No
  383. Oshkosh - 6,307.30 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  384. Performance Food Group - 6,304.90 - Wholesalers: Food and Grocery - No
  385. Peter Kiewit Sons’ - 6,237.00 - Engineering, Construction - Yes
  386. Omnicare - 6,220.00 - Health Care: Pharmacy and Other Services - No
  387. ProLogis - 6,216.80 - Real Estate - Yes
  388. Safeco - 6,208.80 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  389. Franklin Resources - 6,205.80 - Securities - No
  390. Hormel Foods - 6,193.00 - Food Consumer Products - No
  391. NCR - 6,193.00 - Computers, Office Equipment - No
  392. Molson Coors Brewing - 6,190.60 - Beverages - No
  393. Tenneco - 6,184.00 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  394. AutoZone - 6,169.80 - Specialty Retailers - Yes
  395. TravelCenters of America - 6,166.20 - Specialty Retailers - Yes
  396. Starwood Hotels & Resorts - 6,153.00 - Hotels, Casinos, Resorts - No
  397. Harley-Davidson - 6,143.00 - Transportation Equipment - Yes
  398. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans - 6,132.60 - Insurance: Life, Health (mutual) - No
  399. Pitney Bowes - 6,129.80 - Computers, Office Equipment - No
  400. Allied Waste Industries - 6,118.10 - Waste Management - Yes
  401. Stryker - 6,107.90 - Medical Products and Equipment - No
  402. Charles Schwab - 6,063.00 - Securities - No
  403. NRG Energy - 6,039.00 - Energy - Yes
  404. CB Richard Ellis Group - 6,036.40 - Real Estate - Yes
  405. Pantry - 6,015.10 - Specialty Retailers - No
  406. Advanced Micro Devices - 6,013.00 - Semiconductors and Other Electronic Components - No
  407. Emcor Group - 6,006.20 - Engineering, Construction - Yes
  408. Wesco International - 6,003.50 - Wholesalers: Diversified - No
  409. Charter Communications - 6,002.00 - Telecommunications - No
  410. Henry Schein - 6,001.30 - Wholesalers: Health Care - No
  411. Avis Budget Group - 5,986.00 - Automotive Retailing, Services - Yes
  412. Ross Stores - 5,975.20 - Specialty Retailers - No
  413. Mattel - 5,970.10 - Toys, Sporting Goods - No
  414. Realogy - 5,967.00 - Real Estate - Yes
  415. Darden Restaurants - 5,925.00 - Food Services - No
  416. Atmos Energy - 5,898.40 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  417. Corning - 5,860.00 - Network and Other Communications Equipment - No
  418. Anixter International - 5,852.90 - Wholesalers: Diversified - No
  419. Northeast Utilities - 5,823.50 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  420. Hexion Specialty Chemicals - 5,810.00 - Chemicals - No
  421. Asbury Automotive Group - 5,775.90 - Automotive Retailing, Services - Yes
  422. Mosaic - 5,773.70 - Chemicals - No
  423. Affiliated Computer Services - 5,772.50 - Information Technology Services No
  424. Brunswick - 5,770.90 - Transportation Equipment - Yes
  425. Marshall & Ilsley Corp. - 5,745.20 - Commercial Banks - No
  426. Shaw Group - 5,723.70 - Engineering, Construction - Yes
  427. Micron Technology - 5,688.00 - Semiconductors and Other Electronic Components - No
  428. Kelly Services - 5,682.40 - Temporary Help - No
  429. Unisys - 5,652.50 - Information Technology Services - No
  430. Newmont Mining - 5,645.00 - Mining, Crude-Oil Production - Yes
  431. Owens Corning - 5,604.00 - Building Materials, Glass - Yes
  432. Peabody Energy - 5,599.20 - Mining, Crude-Oil Production - Yes
  433. W.R. Berkley - 5,553.60 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  434. Blockbuster - 5,544.40 - Specialty Retailers - No
  435. Fidelity National Financial - 5,524.00 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  436. XTO Energy - 5,513.00 - Mining, Crude-Oil Production - Yes
  437. UGI - 5,476.90 - Energy - Yes
  438. Ecolab - 5,469.60 - Chemicals - No
  439. Western Digital - 5,468.00 - Computer Peripherals - No
  440. Host Hotels & Resorts - 5,461.00 - Real Estate - Yes
  441. Allegheny Technologies - 5,452.50 - Metals - No
  442. Foot Locker - 5,437.00 - Specialty Retailers - No
  443. Agilent Technologies - 5,420.00 - Scientific, Photographic, and Control Equipment - No
  444. Precision Castparts - 5,414.10 - Aerospace and Defense - No
  445. Boise Cascade Holdings - 5,413.50 - Forest and Paper Products - No
  446. Barnes & Noble - 5,410.80 - Specialty Retailers - No
  447. Northern Trust Corp. - 5,395.10 - Commercial Banks - No
  448. Wm. Wrigley Jr. - 5,389.10 - Food Consumer Products - No
  449. URS - 5,383.00 - Engineering, Construction - Yes
  450. Rockwell Automation - 5,344.60 - Electronics, Electrical Equipment - No
  451. BorgWarner - 5,328.60 - Motor Vehicles and Parts - Yes
  452. Pacific Life - 5,325.00 - Insurance: Life, Health (stock) - No
  453. Longs Drug Stores - 5,297.90 - Food and Drug Stores - No
  454. DaVita - 5,264.20 Health Care: Medical Facilities - No
  455. Graybar Electric - 5,258.30 - Wholesalers: Diversified - No
  456. Leggett & Platt - 5,248.90 - Furniture - No
  457. Timken - 5,236.00 - Industrial and Farm Equipment - No
  458. Expeditors International of Washington - 5,235.20 - Transportation and Logistics - Yes
  459. Constellation Brands - 5,216.40 - Beverages - No
  460. USG - 5,202.00 - Building Materials, Glass - Yes
  461. Symantec 5,199.40 Computer Software - No
  462. Frontier Oil - 5,188.70 - Petroleum Refining - Yes
  463. Energy East - 5,178.10 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes
  464. NVR - 5,156.40 - Homebuilders - Yes
  465. Auto-Owners Insurance - 5,129.10 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (mutual) - Yes
  466. SPX - 5,118.10 - Electronics, Electrical Equipment - No
  467. Tribune - 5,112.40 - Publishing, Printing - No
  468. Fiserv - 5,021.70 - Financial Data Services - No
  469. Sovereign Bancorp - 5,010.70 - Savings Institutions - No
  470. Lexmark International - 4,973.90 - Computer Peripherals - No
  471. Hershey - 4,946.70 - Food Consumer Products - No
  472. SunGard Data Systems - 4,901.00 - Financial Data Services - No
  473. Western Union - 4,900.20 - Financial Data Services - No
  474. Clorox - 4,847.00 - Household and Personal Products - No
  475. BlackRock - 4,844.70 - Securities - No
  476. Advance Auto Parts - 4,844.40 - Specialty Retailers - Yes
  477. Insight Enterprises - 4,830.60 - Wholesalers: Electronics and Office Equipment - No
  478. Telephone & Data Systems - 4,829.00 - Telecommunications - No
  479. Liz Claiborne - 4,824.50 - Apparel - No
  480. Western & Southern Financial Group - 4,810.70 - Insurance: Life, Health (mutual) - No
  481. Fidelity National Information Services - 4,810.60 - Financial Data Services - No
  482. BJ Services - 4,802.40 - Oil and Gas Equipment, Services - Yes
  483. Hovnanian Enterprises - 4,798.90 - Homebuilders - Yes
  484. Holly - 4,791.70 - Petroleum Refining - Yes
  485. Universal Health Services - 4,751.00 - Health Care: Medical Facilities - No
  486. El Paso - 4,749.00 - Pipelines - Yes
  487. Spectra Energy - 4,742.00 - Pipelines - Yes
  488. Erie Insurance Group - 4,736.50 - Insurance: Property and Casualty (stock) - Yes
  489. PetSmart - 4,672.70 - Specialty Retailers - No
  490. Cameron International - 4,666.40 - Oil and Gas Equipment, Services - Yes
  491. Chiquita Brands International - 4,662.80 - Food Production - No
  492. Jarden - 4,660.10 - Home Equipment, Furnishings - Yes
  493. Big Lots - 4,656.30 - Specialty Retailers - Yes
  494. Sealed Air - 4,651.20 - Packaging, Containers - No
  495. Toll Brothers - 4,647.00 - Homebuilders - Yes
  496. United Stationers - 4,646.40 - Wholesalers: Electronics and Office Equipment - No
  497. Robert Half International - 4,645.70 - Temporary Help - No
  498. FMC Technologies - 4,638.60 - Oil and Gas Equipment, Services - Yes
  499. Perini - 4,628.40 - Engineering, Construction - Yes
  500. Scana - 4,621.00 - Utilities: Gas and Electric - Yes



Posted in Uncategorized Rage |

4 Responses to “The Fortune 500 - Creating and Servicing Suburban Sprawl?”

  1. 1 | Lewis Derkins | May 29th, 2008, 10:35 pm

    Not only are Safeway’s all over the big cities - they are one of the fundamental things that makes a city possible. I could grow my own food and probably even raise livestock in the suburbs - no such luck in the city.

    I like this analysis. I wonder if Read Much? has ever read this much?

  2. 2 | Capitalist. | June 1st, 2008, 12:34 am

    What’s weird about this “analysis” Judd is that you actually kind of convince me of “Reach Much’s” point here.

    You left a lot of companies off the list that should be on it, especially the finance sector guys who have essentially paid for the sprawl, all the strip-mall and mall-dependent retail outlets that anchor the sprawl (Dillards, Nordstoms), and even companies like CBS which has a huge billboard ad division and sells tons of car ads and whatnot. Also let’s get GE on that list. They fill the houses with appliances and light bulbs and sell the military tech to keep the oil pumping.

    It’s actually quite stunning how much of the US economy is simply in the business of building, furnishing and keeping the lights on and wheels spinning out in suburbia. I never really looked at the 500 like that before. But I sort of see it.

  3. 3 | Judd Wiley | June 1st, 2008, 7:59 am

    Capitalist,

    The point of this “analysis” was not to precisely determine what % of the Fortune 500 actually services the suburbs vs. urban and rural areas.

    The point was to deliver a mocking “knee-jerk reaction” to Much Read?’s absurd statements … “excluding the fantasy wealth generating segments, the US economy fundamentally IS the creation and servicing of suburban sprawl” … “that’s what we make in the US today.” He never defined his terms, nor did he bring any evidence to prove his assertions.

    If you or Read Much? or anyone else can point me to an in-depth study of the entire American economy that proves that a majority of the US economy exists to create and service suburban sprawl, I’ll read that study with vigor and gusto.

    Until then, we all make knee-jerk reactions based on our assumptions and prejudices and biases and instincts and emotions. And depending on how we define the terms of the debate, we all come away with different answers.

  4. 4 | Capitalist. | June 1st, 2008, 3:34 pm

    Well… A quick look at the Fortune 500 seems to support that guy’s “knee jerk” comment is all I’m saying.

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