In every sense of the word, Apple (Nasdaq:AAPL) is a behemoth. The world’s largest company by market capitalization (the term for the total value of a publicly traded company’s stockholder-owned shares), it’s also the world’s largest technology company by revenue, the fourth-largest PC vendor by unit sales, the largest manufacturing company by revenue, and the world’s second-largest mobile phone manufacturer. So it goes without saying that they’ve got some cash laying around. 

Apple’s current cash balance is currently about $61 billion. Apple is no stranger to major acquisitions; it’s bought more than 100 companies over the years, ranging from weather forecasters (Dark Sky) to music recognition apps (Shazam) to headphone companies (Beats). While most of the companies Apple acquires are ones that have perfected a software or hardware that Apple can incorporate into existing products – AI and machine learning, image recognition, wireless charging, payments, and low-light photography companies, for example – it’s fun to imagine the possibilities if they should decide to merge with something completely unexpected, like Ford (NYSE: F), Nintendo, or Kroger (NYSE:KR). Because with the amount of cash the company has on hand, it’s not beyond the realm of possibility. In fact, with its current cash flow, Apple can buy all of these companies with cash.

 

Warner Bros. Discovery

• Market Cap: $24.38 B

A mass media and entertainment conglomerate formed in 2022 when WarnerMedia was spun off from AT&T and merged with Discovery, Inc., Warner Bros. Discovery nine divisions, each with a wide variety of assets. These include Warner Bros. Entertainment (assets including DC Studios), CNN Worldwide, Warner Bros. Discovery U.S. Networks (assets including Discovery Channel, Food Network, and TBS), HBO, and Warner Bros. Discovery Sports. It has its hand in everything from comic books to amusement parks to streaming platforms, and its 2022 revenue was $33.8 billion.

Dollar General

• Market Cap: $25.88 B

A discount general merchandise store headquartered in Tennessee, Dollar General (NYSE:DG) operates more than 19,400 stores in the US and Mexico, and is one of the most profitable stores in rural parts of the US. It’s what’s called a “variety store” specializing in general merchandise ranging from food to clothes to household goods to toiletries, and in 2022 it brought in nearly $38 billion in revenue.

HP

• Market Cap: $27.29 B

Formerly known as Hewlett-Packard before the computer and printer side was spun off in 2015, HP (NYSE: HPQ). is the world’s second largest personal computer vendor by sales. Founded in Palo Alto by Bill Hewlett and David Packard in 1939, HP today develops PCs, printers, and 3-D printers. In 2022, it brought in about $30 billion from the sale of laptops and about $11 billion from the sale of desktops.

Kroger

• Market Cap: $31.57 B

The United States’ largest supermarket operator by revenue, Kroger (NYSE: KR) was founded by Bernard Kroger in Cincinnati in 1883. Today, it operates more than 2,700 grocery stores in 35 states and Washington, DC under many names including Fred Meyer, Harris Teeter, King Soopers, Fry’s, and Ralphs. A merger with Albertsons is expected to close in early 2024.

Adidas

• Market Cap: $32.55 B

Europe’s largest sportswear manufacturer and the second largest in the world (after Nike), Adidas was founded in Germany by Adi Dassler in 1924; the name is an amalgam of his first and last names. It first found popularity with spiked running shoes. Nowadays it’s a true global behemoth, and while shoes are still one of its top sellers, it makes official products for just about every sport as well as t-shirts, jacket, hoodies, and sandals. It’s also the world’s second-largest manufacturer of sports bras.

7-Eleven

• Market Cap: $33.19 B

The world’s most famous convenience store chain, 7-Eleven is headquartered in Irving, Texas, and it operates, franchises, and licenses more than 78,000 stores in 19 countries and territories. Just about every American has stopped into a 7-Eleven at some point in their lives, either for a snack or soda, to buy a lottery ticket, or to purchase a hot dog or their signature frozen drink, the Slurpee.

Spotify

• Market Cap: $33.36 B

A streaming music service founded in Stockholm, Sweden, in 2006, Spotify (NYSE: SPOT) has over 574 million monthly active users who tune in to listen to more than 100 million songs and 5 million podcasts. It offers both free subscriptions (with ads) and paid ad-free subscriptions, and is available in 184 markets worldwide.

DoorDash

• Market Cap: $34.83 B

If you’ve ordered food delivery at any point within the past few years, there’s a good chance you’ve ordered through DoorDash (Nasdaq: DASH). America’s largest food delivery company with 56% market share, in 2020 it surpassed 450,000 merchants, 20,000,000 customers, and a million couriers. In recent years, it’s been experimenting with ghost kitchens called DoorDash Kitchen, with multiple restaurants operating out of each location.

Yum! Brands

• Market Cap: $35.30 B

Yum! Brands is the parent company behind KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and The Habit Burger Grill. It can trace its origins to 1977, when PepsiCo spun it off as Tricon Global Restaurants after acquiring Pizza Hut, and was officially formed in 2002 when Tricon merged with Yorkshire Global Restaurants. Today it has restaurants in more than 130 countries and territories worldwide, with $6.84 billion in 2022 revenue.

Electronic Arts

• Market Cap: $35.71 B

Founded by Apple employee Trip Hawkins in 1982, EA pioneered games intended to be played on home computers instead of separate consoles. Its most popular line of games, EA Sports, includes FIFA Football, Madden NFL, NBA Live, and NASCAR. Other popular EA games include The Sims, Star Wars, and Mass Effect. 

General Mills

• Market Cap: $37.94 B

Originally a large flour miller back in the 1850s, General Mills is today the manufacturer and marketer of some of the food world’s most well-known brands. Along with breakfast cereals sold under the General Mills name including Cheerios, Chex, Lucky Charms, and Trix, other General Mills brands include Betty Crocker, Yoplait, Pillsbury, Haagen-Dazs, and Nature Valley. Its revenue in 2020 was $17.63 billion.

The Hershey Company

• Market Cap: $39.15 B

America’s most famous candy company, Hershey’s was founded by Milton Hershey in 1894 and famously headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania. It rose to fame with Milton’s perfection of the milk chocolate bar in 1900, and seven years later the Hershey’s Kiss, which benefitted from machine wrapping. Mr. Goodbar, Hershey’s Syrup, chocolate chips, and the Krackel bar followed within the next few decades, and today Hershey Company brands include Almond Joy, Kit Kat, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, Twizzlers, Jolly Ranchers, Milk Duds, and York Peppermint Patties.

Ford

• Market Cap: $39.46 B

Founded by Henry Ford, the Ford Motor Company famously pioneered using assembly lines to build cars, and its Model T famously made automobiles affordable for the masses. Today, it’s the second-largest US automaker behind GM, and it sells cars under both Ford and Lincoln brands. It’s the 11th-ranked American company on the Fortune 500, and it produced more than 4 million vehicles in 2022.

Kraft Heinz

• Market Cap: $40.34 B

Formed in 2015 by the merger of two of the food world’s biggest brands, Kraft Heinz is now America’s third-largest food and beverage company. Several dozen are in its portfolio (along with Kraft and Heinz), including Grey Poupon, Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Oscar Mayer, A.1 Sauce, Boca Burger, Ore-Ida, Jell-O, Velveeta, Lunchables, and Maxwell House.

Pernod Ricard

• Market Cap: $44.23 B

You may not be familiar with French company Pernod Ricard, but you’re most likely with some of the world’s second-largest wine and spirits seller’s brands: Beefeater, Seagram’s, and Plymouth gin; Kahlua; Gosling’s and Malibu rum; Absolut vodka; Chivas, Glenlivet, and Jameson whiskey; and Mumm and Perrier-Jouet Champagne. It’s also well-known for its anise-flavoured pastis apéritifs Pernod and Ricard.

Universal Music Group

• Market Cap: $46.08 B

The world’s biggest music company, UMG can trace its roots back to the formation of Decca Records in 1934, and it’s tangentially related to Universal Pictures (although the two have different owners). Known for its innovation in the music industry, UMG is one of the Big Three music labels (along with Sony and Warner), and it’s signed licensing agreements with more than 400 platforms worldwide. Its main labels include Capitol Music Group, Decca Records, Def Jam Records, EMI, Island Records, Motown Records, and Polydor.

Lululemon Athletica

• Market Cap: $52.34 B

Commonly styled as lululemon, Lululemon Athletica was founded in Vancouver by Chip Wilson in 1998, and is credited with inventing yoga pants. The company became hugely successful be selling women’s yoga wear, and it’s since expanded into other athletic wear, bags, yoga mats, and other exercise-adjacent products. Today, there are more than 650 locations worldwide. 

Nintendo

• Market Cap: $52.95 B

Founded in 1889 as a playing card company, Nintendo expanded into video games in the 1970s and became an international phenomenon in the 80s with the release of Donkey Kong and Super Mario Bros. It’s produced some of the industry’s most successful game consoles including Game Boy, N64, Wii, and Switch, as well as some of the most popular video games of all time, including The Legend of Zelda, Pokémon, Super Smash Bros., and Animal Crossing. It’s one of Japan’s most valuable companies.

Heineken

• Market Cap: $52.96 B

Heineken is best known as the Dutch pale lager beer, but its parent company, Heineken N.V., owns more than 165 breweries in more than 70 countries and produces nearly 350 beers and ciders worldwide. Founded in Amsterdam in 1864, the company today owns brands including Tecate, Amstel, Fosters, Krušovice, and Birra Moretti.

Dell

SANTA CLARA, CA – OCTOBER 19: The Dell logo is displayed on the exterior of the new Dell research and development facility on October 19, 2011 in Santa Clara, California. California governor Jerry Brown and Dell Chairman and CEO Michael Dell attended a ribbon cutting to open the new Dell research and development facility that was followed by a career fair to hire hundreds of employees for the new facilty. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

• Market Cap: $53.17 B

Founded by college freshman Michael Dell in 1984, Dell today sells personal computers as well as servers, software, TVs, cameras, and other electronics. Dell remains chairman and CEO, and in 2022 it had revenue of $101.6 billion.

Marriott International

• Market Cap: $58.03 B

The largest hotel chain in the world based on number of rooms, Marriott was founded by Mormon missionaries J. Willard and Alice Marriott in 1927 as – believe it or not – a root beer stand. Today, Marriott operates 30 hotel chains internationally, including The Ritz-Carlton, St. Regis, W Hotels, Sheraton, Renaissance, Westin, and Aloft. Based in Bethesda, Maryland, it had a 2022 revenue of $20.77 billion.

Chipotle Mexican Grill

• Market Cap: $58.19 B

A pioneer of what’s today known as “fast casual” dining, Chipotle was founded by Steve Ells in 1993 after he was inspired by the large, filling burritos he fell in love with in San Francisco’s Mission District. The first location opened in Denver, and today it has more than 3,000 locations nationwide and a handful overseas. Along with burritos, Chipotle also serves bowls, tacos, and quesadillas, and in 2022 it brought in $8.6 billion in revenue. 

PayPal

• Market Cap: $59.04 B

Founded as X.com by a team that included Peter Thiel and Elon Musk and renamed PayPal in 2001, the online payments company went public and was acquired by eBay (at a valuation of $1.5 billion) in 2002. It was spun off to become an independent company in 2015, and today it’s a very popular payment processor for online vendors. It’s ranked 143rd on the 2022 Fortune 500 of the largest United States corporations by revenue.

Target

• Market Cap: $60.00 B

Minneapolis-based Target Corporation was founded by George Dayton in 1902, and today there are nearly 2,000 locations nationwide and it’s number 32 on the Fortune 500. Its stores sell what’s called general merchandise, which includes clothes, electronics, toys, home goods, food – basically anything you want. Despite its success, efforts to open international locations haven’t been successful.

Ferrari

• Market Cap: $61.34 B

The legendary Italian luxury sports car manufacturer, Ferrari was founded by race car driver Enzo Ferrari in 1939. Some Ferraris sold during the 50s and 60s count among the most expensive cars ever sold at auction, and in 2019 it was actually named the world’s strongest brand by Brand Finance, largely due to its devoted fans and licensing deals. It became a public company in 1960.

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