Orange County’s largest public companies were awash in profits and sales in 2005.
The 75 largest publicly traded companies based in OC saw collective 2005 sales of $104 billion, up 19% from a year ago. Net income grew at an even faster clip, up 160% to $5 billion, according to this week’s Business Journal list.
The list ranks the largest public companies based here by sales for the most recent four quarters, most through Dec. 31.
It’s a second consecutive year of big gains for the largest public companies. Last year’s list showed a 15% rise in sales and a 148% jump in net income.
The top 10 companies saw profits grow 64% to $3 billion last year. Sales jumped 19% to $72 billion.
All of the top 10 companies recorded higher sales than a year earlier. Just two had a profit decline,No. 1 Ingram Micro Inc. and No. 8 Beckman Coulter Inc. Ingram and Beckman took restructuring charges associated with job cuts and other changes last year.
Santa Ana-based Ingram continued its dominance at the top of the list with a 13% rise in sales to $28.8 billion. That’s more than twice as much as No. 2 Fluor Corp.
Ingram is the world’s biggest distributor of technology gear. A year ago, the company announced plans to cut 550 jobs in North America, with more than half in OC. Ingram’s companywide employment fell 4% to 13,000, with OC workers down 23% to 917. Ingram’s net income fell 1% to $217 million.
The company saw major executive change. Kent Foster retired as chief executive with former co-president Gregory Spierkel taking over. Co-president Kevin Murai was named chief operating officer and president.
For more on this story, see the April 10 edition of the Business Journal.
