Over the past few decades, technology has been integrated deeper into every corner of the economy. Technology stocks have been some of the market’s best long-term performers, and the technology sector’s total weighting in the S&P 500 has expanded to about 31%.
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Even mega-cap companies like Alphabet Inc. (ticker: GOOG, GOOGL), Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) and Tesla Inc. (TSLA) that aren’t technically classified as tech companies by the Global Industry Classification Standard have businesses that revolve around disruptive technology, such as artificial intelligence and cloud services. Here’s a look at the 10 biggest U.S.-listed public tech companies:
| Company | Market Capitalization |
| Apple Inc. (AAPL) | $3.8 trillion |
| Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) | $3.32 trillion |
| Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) | $3.15 trillion |
| Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) | $1.09 trillion |
| Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (TSM) | $1.03 trillion |
| Oracle Corp. (ORCL) | $454 billion |
| Salesforce Inc. (CRM) | $320 billion |
| SAP SE (SAP) | $290 billion |
| ASML Holding NV (ASML) | $280 billion |
| Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) | $236 billion |
Apple Inc. (AAPL)
Not only is Apple the most valuable company in the world, it is also one of the most profitable companies. While Apple’s revenue growth has slowed, it reported a whopping $93.7 billion in net income in fiscal 2024. Its massive profits supported $94.9 billion in annual buybacks. One of Apple’s next profit growth opportunities could be the rollout of its long-awaited, internally designed cellular modem chips starting in 2025. Apple’s vertical integration strategy and ongoing product innovation could help the company improve iPhone profit margins in the next several years.
Market capitalization: $3.8 trillion
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA)
High-end semiconductor maker Nvidia has been one of the most spectacular growth stories in the entire stock market since the 2008 financial crisis. In March 2009, Nvidia’s market cap was under $5 billion. Just 16 years later, Nvidia’s historic bull run has sent the stock’s market capitalization soaring above $3 trillion, and the company continues to churn out impressive growth numbers thanks to booming AI infrastructure demand. Not only was Nvidia the best-performing stock on this list in 2024, it was the third best-performing stock in the entire S&P 500 for the year.
Market capitalization: $3.32 trillion
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT)
Microsoft is the world’s largest software company and is known for its Windows operating system, Azure cloud services, LinkedIn social media platform, Office professional software suite and Xbox gaming brand. Microsoft is one of the oldest companies on this list. The company was founded in 1975 and went public in 1986. Nearly half a century after its founding, Microsoft’s pivot to subscription-based software, professional cloud services and AI technology has helped it maintain the revenue growth long-term investors have come to expect. Microsoft is hoping its investments in ChatGPT-maker OpenAI will help usher in its next era of growth.
Market capitalization: $3.15 trillion
Broadcom Inc. (AVGO)
Broadcom is a diversified designer, developer and supplier of analog semiconductor devices. Broadcom has been a 20-bagger stock for investors in the past decade, gaining more than 2,234%. Those returns don’t even include the stock’s 1.1% dividend. In addition to its impressive organic revenue growth, Broadcom’s 2023 acquisition of VMware could significantly boost its software capabilities. Broadcom is highly exposed to Apple device sales and should also continue to benefit from growth in data center networking and AI infrastructure spending. VMware could help Broadcom diversify into higher-margin, recurring software sales, providing additional financial visibility for investors.
Market capitalization: $1.09 trillion
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (TSM)
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing is the world’s largest contract chipmaker, producing cutting-edge semiconductor chips designed by Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD), Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM) and other customers. Taiwan Semiconductor was founded back in 1987 and has been the leading dedicated global semiconductor foundry ever since, generating a 793% return for investors in the past decade. In recent years, Taiwan Semi’s foundries have become even more important to the tech world given Intel Corp. (INTC) has struggled with its in-house manufacturing processes. Taiwan Semiconductor holds an impressive 64% share of the global semiconductor foundry market.
Market capitalization: $1.03 trillion
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Oracle Corp. (ORCL)
Oracle is one of the world’s largest enterprise software and cloud services providers, specializing in database management software. Oracle has stable top-line growth, generates consistent profits, has an attractive valuation and is reinvesting excess income in stock buybacks and its 0.8% dividend. Oracle has world-class data center infrastructure, and its enterprise resource planning (ERP) software system helps manufacturers manage their processes, including planning and purchasing materials. The company claims its Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Supercluster is currently the largest, fastest AI supercomputer available in the cloud. AI chipmaker Nvidia is one of Oracle’s major cloud computing customers.
Market capitalization: $454 billion
Salesforce Inc. (CRM)
Salesforce is the world’s largest provider of cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) software. While Salesforce’s revenue growth has slowed in recent years, its profits and margins have increased. Salesforce was a pioneer of the software-as-a-service model, and the company’s aggressive acquisition strategy has allowed it to build the most comprehensive portfolio of CRM products in the market. Salesforce’s large customer base creates opportunities for cross-selling and upselling, and the company has a history of high customer retention rates. Salesforce automation remains a high-growth market, and AI technology investments could help Salesforce capture even more market share in the coming years.
Market capitalization: $320 billion
SAP SE (SAP)
SAP is a global leader in ERP software. The company offers several AI-driven business solutions to help companies optimize finance, supply chains, procurement, sales and marketing. SAP’s Qualtrics segment sells experience management cloud solutions. The company’s intelligent spending category includes Ariba and Concur, which focus on procurement, travel and expense reporting. SAP is transitioning its business to a cloud-based model, and it has reported early success with its AI products, including its digital copilot, Joule. SAP’s ability to consistently secure large-scale deals is a testament to its value to customers.
Market capitalization: $290 billion
ASML Holding NV (ASML)
ASML is headquartered in the Netherlands and is one of the world’s largest semiconductor manufacturing equipment suppliers. The global semiconductor market could become a $1 trillion industry by 2032, and ASML is the world’s only manufacturer of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines. Chipmakers use EUV technology to print increasingly smaller chip designs. ASML doesn’t design or produce any chips itself, it simply designs the machines that create cutting-edge chips for Intel, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing and other chipmakers. Given ASML’s key role in semiconductor manufacturing and its lack of competition, the company has plenty of growth opportunities ahead.
Market capitalization: $280 billion
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO)
Cisco Systems provides networking, cloud, and cybersecurity hardware and software. Cisco is a rare value among mega-cap tech stocks given its shares trade at just a 16 forward earnings multiple. It also pays an attractive 2.7% dividend. Cisco is a market leader in enterprise networking, including switching, routing and wireless access. The company also has complementary businesses in security and collaboration services, adding diversification and cross-selling opportunities. While the rise of the public cloud has threatened Cisco’s legacy business, the company has successfully pivoted its networking business to focus more on software and public cloud services.
Market capitalization: $236 billion
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The 10 Biggest Tech Companies in the World originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 12/31/24: This story was previously published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
