Apple generates $234 billion in annual revenue. After expenses of $163.4 billion and taxes of $19.2 billion, Apple is left with net income of $51.3 billion. From this, Apple paid $11.6 billion in dividends and repurchased $34.8 billion of its own stock, retaining the rest. Apple enjoys wider profit margins than eight of its top ten peers and pays more in corporate taxes than any other US company. Its significant profits and stock buybacks help explain Apple's massive growth over the past 20 years.

1. Apple's Cabbage
How the iPhone-maker spends its revenue.

2. $234billionApple's revenue (ttm)

3. $238 billion
$234 billion
$230 billion
GreeceApplePortugal
If Apple were a country...

4. $0 billion
$500 billion
The S&P 500 Companies, Ranked by Revenue
Apple:
3rd

5. Not all of this falls to the bottom line.

6. 70%
Where does Apple's revenue go?
$234
Billion
Expenses ate up $163.4 billion.$163.4 billion

7. Where does Apple's revenue go?
70%
8%
$234
Billion
Taxes accounted for another $19.2 billion.$19.2 billion

8. Where does Apple's revenue go?
70%
8%
22%
$234
Billion
Leaving net income of $51.3 billion

9. Where does Apple's revenue go?
70%
8%
5%
22%
$234
Billion
From this, it paid dividends totalling $11.6 billion

10. Where does Apple's revenue go?
70%
8%
5%
15%22%
$234
Billion
Bought back common stock worth $34.8 billion

11. Where does Apple's revenue go?
70%
8%
5%
15%
2%
22%
$234
Billion
And retained the rest…

12. Interesting
observations3

13. $19.1B
$8.5B
$5.6B
$4.5B
AAPL GE XOM WMT MSFT MRK VZ DIS CMCSA UNH
The 10 Biggest Corporate Taxpayers in America
Based on income tax provisions, trailing twelve months
First, Apple pays A LOT in taxes.

14. Second, Apple enjoys wider profit margins
than eight out of ten of its peers.
30%
Apple's
pretax
operating
margin (ttm)
19%Average
pretax
operating
margin of the 100
biggest S&P 500
companies
(ttm)

15. 0%
5,000%
10,000%
15,000%
20,000%
25,000%
30,000%
1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 2015
Apple's
Stock
S&P 500
Which, third,
explains this…

16. Looking for more information like this?
The Motley Fool’s mission is to help the world invest better. We’ve done
this over the past 20 years by thinking long term and outside the box –
even if that means turning Wall Street on its head. To receive a special free
report about what The Motley Fool thinks might be the next big industry
to come out of Silicon Valley, just click here now.