The S&P 500's Leanest Companies

Unemployment hit 8.9 percent in April and some predict that number could climb to over 10 percent in 2009 as major companies streamline operations to combat the recession.  But how far can this streamlining really go? For many companies, revenues hinge on worker productivity, and for most operations, per-worker profits and revenues are many multiples of average employee salaries. The measure of revenue per employee also helps shed light on a firm's money-making efficiency and likelihood it will retain jobs. The best companies require  the least number of workers to make the most money. Using data from ThomsonReuters, we look at how much revenue S&P 500 companies generated per employee over the past 12 months (Q2 2008 - Q1 2009), compared within each of the S&P 500’s 24 industry groups. Of note, data on the entire banking industry group and some finance-related institutions are not tracked. Note: because many banks report revenue as interest income and not sales on their financials, we have excluded them from this analysis for a more apples-to-apples comparison.  So, which companies make the most revenue per employee? Click ahead to find out!By Ariel Nelson & Paul ToscanoPosted 26 May 2009

Photo: AP Industry Leader: Harley Davidson (HOG)Annual revenue per employee: $641,612Annual profit per employee: $62,848Employees: 9,300Industry Laggard: Johnson Controls (JCI)Annual revenue per employee: $234,450Annual profit per employee: -$2,600Employees: 140,000Complete Sector Information

Industry Leader: KB Home (KBH)Annual revenue per employee: $1,591,921Annual profit per employee: -$478,769Employees: 1,600Industry Laggard: VF Corp. (VFC)Annual revenue per employee: $161,411Annual profit per employee: $11,892Employees: 46,600Complete Sector Information

Photo: Daquella Manera Industry Leader: H & R Block (HRB)Annual revenue per employee: $436,295Annual profit per employee: $51,172Employees: 9,700Industry Laggard: Starwood Hotels (HOT) Annual revenue per employee: $38,338Annual profit per employee: $1,248Employees: 145,000Complete Sector Information

Photo: Juan de Dios Santander Vela Industry Leader: Viacom Inc. (VIA)Annual revenue per employee: $1,253,304Annual profit per employee: $100,522Employees: 11,500Industry Laggard: Interpublic Group (IPG)Annual revenue per employee: $151,173Annual profit per employee: $6,784Employees: 45,000Complete Sector Information

Photo: AP Industry Leader: Amazon.com (AMZN)Annual revenue per employee: $962,319Annual profit per employee: $33,237Employees: 20,600Industry Laggard: Gap Inc. (GPS)Annual revenue per employee: $108,403Annual profit per employee: $7,216Employees: N/AComplete Sector Information

Photo: AP Industry Leader: Costco Wholesale (COST)Annual revenue per employee: $972,688Annual profit per employee: $15,932Employees: 75,000Industry Laggard: Whole Foods (WFMI)Annual revenue per employee: $169,962Annual profit per employee: $2,201Employees: 46,800Complete Sector Information

Photo: AP Industry Leader: Archer Daniels Midland (ADM)Annual revenue per employee: $2,697,790Annual profit per employee: $73,007Employees: 27,600Industry Laggard: Pepsi Bottling (PBG)Annual revenue per employee: $204,371Annual profit per employee: $2,874Employees: 66,800Complete Sector Information

Photo: EMPTV Industry Leader: Clorox (CLX)Annual revenue per employee: $656,024Annual profit per employee: $63,253Employees: 8,300Industry Laggard: Estee Lauder (EL) Annual revenue per employee: $239,159Annual profit per employee: $11,378Employees: 32,000Complete Sector Information

Photo: AP Industry Leader: Murphy Oil Corp. (MUR)Annual revenue per employee: $7,609,147Annual profit per employee: $436,833Employees: 3,206Industry Laggard: Nabors Industries (NBR)Annual revenue per employee: $190,448Annual profit per employee: $15,724Employees: 26,912Complete Sector Information

Photo: AP Industry Leader: NASDAQ OMX (NDAQ)Annual revenue per employee: $1,486,727Annual profit per employee: $115,983Employees: 2,507Industry Laggard: Leucadia National (LUK)Annual revenue per employee: $281,047Annual profit per employee: -$579,882Employees: 3,584Complete Sector Information

Industry Leader: MBIA Inc. (MBI)Annual revenue per employee: $9,560,455Annual profit per employee:  $1,034,971Employees: 420Industry Laggard: Amer. Int’l Grp. (AIG)Annual revenue per employee: $151,129Annual profit per employee: -$843,043Employees: 116,000Complete Sector Information

Photo: AP Industry Leader: Host Hotels & Resorts (HST)Annual revenue per employee: $23,236,360Annual profit per employee: $1,204,546Employees: 215Industry Laggard: CB Richard Ellis (CBG)Annual revenue per employee: $159,611Annual profit per employee: -$35,981Employees: 30,000Complete Sector Information

Photo: AP Industry Leader: AmerisourceBergen (ABC) Annual revenue per employee: $7,196,345Annual profit per employee: $49,938Employees: 9,700Industry Laggard: Lab Corp of America (LH)Annual revenue per employee: $162,775Annual profit per employee: $17,132Employees: 28,000Complete Sector Information

Photo: AP Industry Leader: Gilead Sciences (GILD)Annual revenue per employee: $1,630,249Annual profit per employee: $610,931Employees: 3,441Industry Laggard: PerkinElmer Inc. (PKI)*Annual revenue per employee: $241,813Annual profit per employee: $15,249Employees: 8,500*Originally listed was Life Technologies (LIFE), but it was brought to the attention of CNBC that due to a recent merger of companies, ThomsonReuters data did not reflect the combined revenues for Life Technologies over the past 12 months. This ranking has been changed to reflect this correction. Complete Sector Information

Photo: AP Industry Leader: Fluor Corp. (FLR)Annual revenue per employee: $833,934Annual profit per employee:  $28,746Employees: 27,958Industry Laggard: Fastenal Corp. (FAST)Annual revenue per employee: $166,072Annual profit per employee: $19,098Employees: 12,736Complete Sector Information

Photo: Diaper Industry Leader: Dun & Bradstreet (DNB)Annual revenue per employee: $350,816Annual profit per employee: $72,490Employees: 4,900Industry Laggard: Cintas Corp (CTAS)Annual revenue per employee: $114,852Annual profit per employee: $9,175Employees: 34,000Complete Sector Information

Photo: AP Industry Leader: CH Robinson (CHRW) Annual revenue per employee: $1,040,377Annual profit per employee: $45,005Employees: 7,481Industry Laggard: UPS (UPS)Annual revenue per employee: 116,782Annual profit per employee: 5,864Employees: 426,000Complete Sector Information

Photo: Huang jia hui Industry Leader: Broadcom (BRCM)Annual revenue per employee: $605,318Annual profit per employee: $6,559Employees: 7,185Industry Laggard: National Semi (NSM)Annual revenue per employee: $224,877Annual profit per employee: $30,164Employees: 6,500Complete Sector Information

Industry Leader: Apple Inc. (AAPL) Annual revenue per employee: $1,052,781Annual profit per employee: $156,813Employees: 32,000Industry Laggard: Molex Inc. (MOLX)Annual revenue per employee: $89,650Annual profit per employee: -$1,552Employees: 32,160Complete Sector Information

Photo: AP Industry Leader: Google Inc. (GOOG)Annual revenue per employee: $1,093,892Annual profit per employee: $214,768Employees: 20,164Industry Laggard: Convergys Corp. (CVG)Annual revenue per employee: $36,855Annual profit per employee: -$1,344Employees: 75,000Complete Sector Information

Industry Leader: CF Industries (CF)Annual revenue per employee: $2,622,933Annual profit per employee: $391,133Employees: 1,500Industry Laggard: Ecolab Inc. (ECL)Annual revenue per employee: $227,464Annual profit per employee:  $15,204Employees: 26,500Complete Sector Information

Photo: TheBusyBrain Industry Leader: American Tower (AMT)Annual revenue per employee: $1,349,998Annual profit per employee: $208,207Employees: 1,198Industry Laggard:  Embarq Corp. (EQ)Annual revenue per employee: $368,388Annual profit per employee: $47,313Employees: 15,000Complete Sector Information

Photo: AP Industry Leader: Integrys Energy (TEG)Annual revenue per employee: $2,554,798Annual profit per employee: -$36,859Employees: 5,191Industry Laggard: Pinnacle West (PNW)Annual revenue per employee: $441,095Annual profit per employee: $6,926Employees: 7,500Complete Sector InformationReplay SlideshowWorld's Highest Corporate Tax RatesHighest Paid CEOsLargest IPOs in US History

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