Under Mark Zuckerberg’s tenure, Facebook has achieved multiple milestones that place it among an elite group of companies. The company is now the youngest of the crème de la crème of the top performing firms globally.
According to the research data analyzed and published by Wette.de, Facebook’s market cap has increased by a cumulative $932.0 billion under his leadership. In the 9.3 years that he has been at the helm, it grew by an average of $100.7 billion annually.
The report ranks Zuckerberg fourth among a number of noteworthy CEOs referred to as Masterchefs. Apple CEO Tim Cook tops the list, while Satya Nadella (Microsoft) ranks second, and Jeff Bezos (Amazon) is third. Fourth on the list is Sundar Pichai (Google/Alphabet).
During Cook’s 10-year tenure, Apple has recorded an increase of $2.101 trillion in market cap. That translates to an average of $210.3 billion every year.
On the other hand, Nadella has led Microsoft to an increase of $1.986 trillion over 7.5 years. That translates to $263.3 billion every year, a higher growth rate than that of Apple.
Amazon’s market value has surged by $1.770 trillion in the 24.1 years that Bezos was CEO. Its growth rate is considerably lower but nonetheless impressive at $73.3 billion annually.
With Sundar Pichai as its CEO, Google/Alphabet has grown its market cap by $1.396 trillion in 6.0 years. This is the second highest growth rate behind Microsoft’s, a cool $231.5 billion per year.
Other noteworthy CEOs who make the cut include Tesla’s Elon Musk ($671.2 billion in 11.1 years) and Berkshire Hathaway’s Warren Buffet ($646.1 billion in 44.8 years). Tencent’s Pony Ma and Alibaba’s Jack Ma round it all up.
Facebook Ranks 6th Among Trillion-Dollar Companies at $1.01 Trillion
Facebook also belongs to a highly exclusive group of companies that have broken the 13-digit barrier. Only six publicly traded firms in history have hit a market capitalization of $1 trillion or more. And Facebook happens to be one of them.
According to a Visual Capitalist report, it ranks sixth in the trillion-dollar group of companies. It is also the youngest company ever to achieve this valuation milestone. Though it dipped in and out of the club in July 2021, as of August 2021, it was firmly footed with a $1.01 trillion valuation.
Top on the list is Apple, which is 45 years old and has a valuation of $2.48 trillion. The 46-year-old Microsoft is second with $2.20 trillion and Saudi Aramco is third with $1.88 trillion at 88 years. The latter is the only non-American company featuring on the leaderboard.
Alphabet (23 years) is fourth with $1.83 trillion and Amazon (27 years) ranks fifth with $1.64 trillion.
There are a number of companies waiting in the wings to join the club, currently boasting a valuation of $500 billion or more. The 17-year-old Tesla tops this list with $659 billion and Berkshire Hathaway is second, aged 182 years, with $655 billion.
Taiwan’s TSMC holds the third position with $576 billion after 34 years of existence and 23-year-old Tencent follows at $537 billion. Visa, which is 63 years old, makes the cut with $515 billion.
All the companies on the elite list are in the tech industry, the only exceptions being Berkshire Hathaway and Saudi Aramco.
Facebook’s Profit Grew by 101% to $10.4 Billion in Q2 2021
In Q2 2021, Facebook reported revenue growth at 56%, hitting $28.6 billion. The growth rate was significantly faster than Microsoft’s and Apple’s. Profit during the period grew by an impressive 101%, reaching $10.4 billion.
Daily users across its group of apps (WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram) surged 12% YoY, reaching 2.76 billion.
Non-advertising revenue (from the sales of Oculus Quest VR headset) grew at a relatively modest 36%. On the other hand, ad spend on Instagram and Facebook shot up by 50% globally, despite a 12.4% decline in Facebook ad reach.
The average price per ad during the quarter rose by 47% while the total number of ad impressions was up by 6%.
Comparatively, Google’s ad revenues in the same period rose by 69% and accounted for 82% of the company’s revenue. YouTube ad spend grew exceptionally fast, at 84%, while Google Search and other advertising increased by 68%.
Facebook issued a warning on potential headwinds to its ad business during the third quarter of the year. It specifically highlighted privacy-centric updates to Apple’s iOS as a threat for effective ad targeting.
However, Zuckerberg pointed to the firm’s plans to reduce its reliance on ad revenue. To this end, it is expanding efforts to support content creation and will monetize creator tools starting in 2023.
