Several AGRR-related companies, including insurers and automakers, are named to this year’s “World’s Most Admired Companies” list by Fortune, which is expected to hit newsstands later this month. On the insurance side, Berkshire Hathaway, parent company to Geico, is ranked at No. 4 out of the top 50 companies. Automakers to make the top 50 include BMW at No. 14, Toyota at No. 25 and Volkswagen at No. 36. Additional insurance companies and automakers were scored but did not make it into the top 50.
“The Most Admired list is the definitive report card on corporate reputations,” according to Fortune.
Fortune began with about 1,400 companies, including the Fortune 1,000—ranked by revenue and non-U.S. companies in Fortune’s Global 500 database with revenue of $10 billion or more. The company then selected the 15 largest companies for each international industry and the 10 largest for each U.S. industry, analyzing 692 companies from 30 countries.
Geico Auto Insurance is a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway. The parent company took 4th on the overall listing, ranking No. 1 in the insurance casualty and property category.
“With Warren Buffett, the legendary value investor and ‘Oracle of Omaha’ at its helm, Berkshire Hathaway is considered one of the market’s surest bets. The investment firm, which has holdings in scores of iconic American companies from Benjamin Moore to Coca-Cola to See’s Candies, saw its stock climb 26 percent in 2013,” Fortune notes.
Headquartered in Omaha, Neb., the company’s overall score was 7.11.
No. 14 on Fortunate’s list is BMW.
“BMW sold more vehicles in 2013 than ever before, with nearly 2 million BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce models sold worldwide, beating its 2012 record by 6.4 percent,” Fortune reports. “The luxury carmaker also continues to be a workplace in demand. In the German Student Survey, both business and engineering students ranked BMW second among their ideal employers in 2013.”
Based in Munich, Germany, BMW’s score is 7.68.
Coming in at No. 23 on the list is 3M, which produces window film, among other products.
“This eclectic manufacturer—3M makes Post-it Notes, digital dental care equipment and road safety products, to name just a few things—is lavishing shareholders with a 35-percent bump in dividends this quarter, which makes for 56 years straight of annual increases. To keep the good ideas flowing, the company plans to spend up to $10 billion on acquisitions through 2017, though the right opportunity could tempt CEO Inge Thulin to go even higher,” according to Fortune officials.
Based in Saint Paul, Minn., 3M’s overall score is 6.33.
Toyota grabbed the 25th spot on the magazine’s list.
“The world’s top-selling automaker has in recent years battled natural disasters such as Japan’s 2011 tsunami, along with a string of recalls over issues such as unintended acceleration. Still, in 2013 Toyota’s 9.98 million in car sales bested those of rival General Motors by 270,000 units. The company’s investment in gas-electric technology enabled Prius to take off as a leading brand, and helped change the way drivers across the globe think of hybrids,” Fortune officials explain.
Headquartered in Toyota, Japan, the automaker earned a score of 6.96.
Snagging 36th place on the list is Volkswagen. The company, which is based in Wolfsburgh, Germany, received an overall score of 6.23. Fortune officials did not explain why they believe this company is most admired, as they did with some of the others.
Other industry-related companies to be scored but not ranked in the top 50 include:
—PPG with a score of 6.81;
—USAA with a score of 6.05;
—Travelers Cos. with a score of 5.85;
—State Farm Insurance with a score of 5.8;
—Zurich Insurance Group with a score of 5.79;
—Allstate with a score of 5.68;
—General Motors with a score of 5.77;
—Daimler with a score of 6.64;
—Honda with a score of 5.44;
—Hyundai with a score of 5.4; and
—Ford with a score of 5.35.
For a complete list of the most admired companies, click here.
