It’s not surprising, perhaps, that technology and media firms have created more value for shareholders over the past five years than have companies in any other sector. What may be surprising is that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) is not among them.

Analysts at the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) recently released their 2018 list of the 50 global companies that have posted the highest total shareholder return (TSR) over the past five years. At the top of the list of large-cap firms is chipmaker Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ: NVDA) with a TSR of 76.1%. Streaming media firm Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) ranks second with a TSR of 70.7%.

Familiar names like Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB), Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) and Sony Corp. (NYSE: SNE) are included in the top 10, along with less familiar names like Japan’s Keyence, a sensor manufacturer, and China’s Kweichow Moutai, a partially state-owned liquor maker and the only firm in the top 10 that produces consumer non-durable products.

BCG senior partner Alexander Roos noted:

We have not seen such a dominance of effectively two sectors—technology and media and publishing—over the 20-year history of the BCG Value Creators research. It clearly shows how technology, data, and content have become the most critical resources for value creation.

The median TSR for the more than 2,400 firms that BCG tracks is 15.6%, well above the long-run historical average of around 10%. The five-year average for the top 10 large-cap firms in the 2018 list is 49%, up from 41% in 2017.

While U.S.-based firms dominate the top 10 and top 20, Asian firms placed seven companies in the top 10 of all 2,400 companies and more than 60 of the top 100. BCG associate director Hady Farag said:

The strong TSR performance of emerging Asian companies in the overall database suggests that the global large caps dominating the headlines today may be facing new challengers in coming years that are not yet on these companies’ radars—or their investors’ radars. Take note of the up-and-coming companies around the world; they will likely be the next wave of new market entrants, competitors, and acquirers.

Here are the top 20 large-cap firms that have created the highest TSR for investors over the past five years, along with the total return percentages:

1. Nvidia: 76.1%
2. Netflix: 70.7%
3. Broadcom: 54.6%
4. Tencent Holdings: 53.6%
5. Facebook: 46%
6. Sony: 40.8%
7. Keyence: 39.9%
8. Amazon: 36.1%
9. Adobe Systems: 36%
10. Kweichow Moutai: 35.1%
11. Boeing: 34.8%
12. Naspers: 34.6%
13. UnitedHealth Group: 34.5%
14. Aetna: 32.8%
15. Lockheed Martin: 32.4%
16. Anthem: 32.1%
17. Charter Communications: 31.8%
18. Texas Instruments: 31%
19. Charles Schwab: 30.2%
20. Microsoft: 29.6%

Visit the BCG website for a slick interactive presentation of the top 50 value creators and more information on value creation.

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