Michael Snowhite

1. California Educators
Weekly Report
Monday, May 20, 2013
Dear Michael,
Our weekly email is aimed at keeping you up to date on important topics and changes. We hope you find these weekly emails informative
and enjoyable. Each week we will bring you important updates and useful information, in an easy to understand format. Enjoy!
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O P E N I N G T H O U G H T S …
In The Headlines
Fortune 500 Shows Changes
It’s May and time again for one of the great American business rituals, the announcement of the
Fortune 500, which lists the top U.S. companies, ranked in order of their annual revenue.
Retail behemoth Wal-Mart Stores Inc. regained the top spot on the list by posting strong sales growth
despite a challenging economy for its shoppers. The company’s revenue grew nearly 6 percent in
2012 to $469.2 billion.
Exxon Mobil Inc. dropped to the second spot, with revenue of $449.9 billion, but was still the most
profitable company. Energy companies dominated the top ten slots, with oil and gas producer Chevron
at No. 3 and refiners Valero Energy and Phillips 66, spun off from ConocoPhillips last year, joining the
top 10.
Moving up two spots to No. 5 is Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc., which owns everything from insurers to railroads to newspaper
publishers and is in the process of acquiring Heinz Co. Manufacturing stalwarts General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co. and General Electric
Co. all remained in the top 10.
The continuing popularity of the iPad and iPhone helped Apple Inc. jump 11 spots to crack the top 10 for the first time, landing at No. 6. The
company’s soaring stock price also made it one of the most valuable companies by market cap last year, though its shares have since
posted a double-digit decline.
Some notable departures from the top 10 included technology bellwether Hewlett-Packard Co. which slipped to No. 15 from No. 10 as the
technology pioneer struggled with a broad consumer shift from PCs to smartphones and tablets, as well as its own management missteps.
Also exiting the top 10 was government mortgage provider Fannie Mae, which dropped four spots to No. 12.
One much publicized newcomer to the Fortune 500 was social media powerhouse Facebook, which went public last year.