Sixteen Pharmaceutical Companies from the 2019 Global Top 100 by Market Cap File IPO Prospectus

PwC recently released its 2019 Global Top 100 Companies report, which ranks the world’s top 100 companies by market capitalization (as of March 31, 2019) and compares changes in the list since 2018.

The total market capitalization of the top 100 global companies in 2019 was $21.1 trillion, a 5% increase from 2018, with Microsoft surpassing Apple, which had held the top spot for seven consecutive years, to become the most valuable publicly listed company.

By region, the United States continues to dominate the Global Top 100 companies, with 54 firms listed, accounting for 63% of the total market capitalization, up from 51% a decade ago. Greater China ranks second with 15 companies; Alibaba, a familiar name, ranks 7th globally with a market capitalization of $472 billion, while Tencent ranks 8th with a market capitalization of $438 billion. The United Kingdom ranks third with 6 companies. Overall, Europe has seen a reduction of 11 companies, with its total market capitalization declining by 12% compared to the same period.

Technology and e-commerce companies dominate the top of the list, but their growth has been sluggish compared to the same period last year. In contrast, the healthcare, consumer services, and telecommunications sectors have performed better, all maintaining a 15% growth rate, while the technology sector grew by only 6%.

Compared with the previous year, among the top 10 companies in the Top 100 with the highest market capitalization growth, the top two were pharmaceutical companies: Eli Lilly (59%) and Merck & Co. (46%). Additionally, Abbott ranked fifth in growth (34%), and Thermo Fisher Scientific ranked eighth (32%).

Eli Lilly, AstraZeneca, and Thermo Fisher Scientific returned to the top 100 list this year. A total of 16 healthcare companies made the list, including well-known names such as Roche, Novartis, Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer, Medtronic, Amgen, and Merck & Co. (MSD). The specific rankings are as follows:

The world’s most valuable company has nearly tripled in market capitalization over the past decade, rising from $337 billion in 2009 to $905 billion in 2019 (Microsoft). Moreover, the gap between the top-ranked and the 100th-ranked companies in the top 100 list has continued to widen, with Microsoft currently leading the 100th-ranked UK-based Rio Tinto Group ($99 billion) by a substantial margin of $806 billion.

Johnson & Johnson, the pharmaceutical company with the highest market capitalization, stands at $372 billion, ranking 9th among the top 100 companies.

Over the past year, although healthcare companies maintained a growth rate higher than that of the Top 100 enterprises overall, another survey by PwC revealed that CEOs of medical and pharmaceutical companies have generally lost confidence in global economic growth, anticipating a difficult period ahead.

The survey reveals a significant decline in the number of CEOs optimistic about global economic growth, with their confidence in their companies’ future growth weakening over the past year. CEOs cited policy uncertainty and excessive regulation as the primary challenges to economic growth.

Amid cooling optimism about global economic growth and facing future uncertainties, pharmaceutical CEOs have generally reduced hiring while increasing training for upskilling. Nearly half of the CEOs advocate for retraining or professional skills enhancement for existing employees to acquire necessary capabilities. Another quarter believe that establishing robust talent pipelines directly with educational institutions would also yield significant benefits.