Most Respected Companies: Barron's

Maybe you can't get no respect, but some companies certainly can.

On Saturday, Barron's released the results of an investor survey that asked for the 100 corporations they most respected. Apple held firm at the top slot, despite the death of long-time CEO Steve Jobs. Other big winners this year include Toyota, United Parcel Service and Nestlé.

Not everyone fared so well. JPMorgan Chase, still recovering from the massive losses it experienced in May, fell 35 notches to forty-ninth on the list.

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway also suffered. "I can't respect a company whose head wants to raise my taxes," the president of Adrian Day Asset Management in Annapolis, Maryland, tells Barron's, calling out Buffett's "pseudo-folksiness."

No Chinese companies made the list either, notes Forbes contributor Panos Mourdoukoutas. The reason for China's corporate-respect deficit, he argues, is some combination of an unsound management system, government intervention, a lack of accounting transparency and a missing capitalist mindset.

Below are Barron's top 10 most respected corporations in the world:

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• 10. Intel

  Respect Highly: 35 percent Respect: 46 percent Respect Somewhat: 10 percent Don't Respect: 3 percent Mean Score: 3.38

• 9. Nestlé

  Respect Highly: 35 percent Respect: 43 percent Respect Somewhat: 15 percent Don't Respect: 1 percent Mean Score 3.4

• 8. Coca Cola

  Respect Highly: 39 percent Respect: 41 percent Respect Somewhat: 16 percent Don't Respect: 2 percent Mean Score: 3.41

• 7. United Parcel Service (UPS)

  Respect Highly: 33 percent Respect: 48 percent Respect Somewhat: 11 percent Don't Respect: 1 percent Mean Score: 3.43

• 6. 3M

  Respect Highly: 35 percent Respect: 47 percent Respect Somewhat: 9 percent Don't Respect: 3 percent Mean Score: 3.44

• 5. Caterpillar

  Respect Highly: 34 percent Respect: 46 percent Respect Somewhat: 9 percent Don't Respect: 2 percent Mean Score: 3.5

• 4. Amazon.com

  Respect Highly: 41 percent Respect: 37 percent Respect Somewhat: 15 percent Don't Respect: 0 percent Mean Score: 3.57

• 3. McDonald's

  Respect Highly: 48 percent Respect: 34 percent Respect Somewhat: 9 percent Don't Respect: 3 percent Mean Score: 3.73

• 2. IBM

  Respect Highly: 47 percent Respect: 35 percent Respect Somewhat: 10 percent Don't Respect: 1 percent Mean Score: 3.75

• 1. Apple

  Respect Highly: 71 percent Respect: 23 percent Respect Somewhat: 3 percent Don't Respect: 3 percent Mean Score: 4.27

Comments

[Tom Hendricks]

12:09 PM on 06/27/2012

Time to test these companies. Will you each hire one person to help the country on a National Hiring Day? Will you help your country, or turn your back and then ask for government aid with lower taxes, lower regulations, more subsidies? Tough questions!

Corporations are sitting on a lot of profit - all time highs - and they are ready to hire, but scared to stand out and be the first. A National Hiring Day would help all.

National Hiring Day - This is a day that corporatio­­ns are encouraged to hire new employees. Corporatio­­ns are called on to put patriotism first and help their country in
hard times. Those corporatio­­ns that cannot hire, are asked to stop firing for that month.

1. If companies can send thousands of jobs overseas, they can hire one American on National Hiring Day.
2. If companies can get millions in tax breaks and subsidies from the government, they can help it in return by hiring one American on National Hiring Day.
3. With companies sitting on all time high profits, they can hire one person on National Hiring Day - which by the way, would help them in return.
4. McDonalds hired 60,000 last May in their own National Hiring Day, surely other companies can hire one person on a nationwide National Hiring Day.
5. If Google can make 40 million available for charity, they can hire one person on National Hiring Day.

[nascarteamowner]

08:40 AM on 06/27/2012

Respected for what?

[3fingerbrown]

08:22 AM on 06/27/2012

Who cares what investors respect? Investors respect profit. If there was money in torturing heretics, investors would respect the Spanish Inquisition.

The list I'd rather see would be the companies most respected by their customers.
(Hey, guys, remember us? The customers? We're the poor suckers who are paying more money for less quality so your stockholders can get a few more pennies per share next quarter.)

[Independentview1]

01:28 AM on 06/27/2012

Few companies outsource more jobs than Apple.

[August Observer]

09:54 PM on 06/26/2012

No problem with 9 of the top 10.

I have issue with Apple ranked as number uno.

Their products may be good, but Apple's net profits are greater than Exxon's now which justifies my opinion they over charging consumers while 450,000 of their employees are in China or elsewhere out of the USA.

[Grand Butbo]

08:24 PM on 06/26/2012

I think it is amazing for someone to tell you what it is like to walk in someone elses shoes. How do they do that, must be an anilitical thing or the stars are aligned right, maybe the moon has some thing to do with it too.

[Early Cuyler]

02:22 PM on 06/26/2012

uh...........lost my train of thought...........back to my party liquor

[Sirius Lee]

02:10 PM on 06/26/2012

If you follow that first link to Barrons, you'll see that the survey asked "money managers", not "investors" (like the article says). Anybody reading this should ask themselves how much they respect the average money manager's opinions before reading too much into this survey.

[vandegrasse]

11:46 PM on 06/26/2012

Good point!

[charlesa1946]

01:22 PM on 06/26/2012

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway also suffered. "I can't respect a company whose head wants to raise my taxes," the president of Adrian Day Asset Management in Annapolis, Maryland, tells Barron's, calling out Buffett's "pseudo-folksiness."
Thank You, Adrian Day - pseudo-folksiness. Will quote you many times. Well said. For many of our public figures. Lay people as well.

[brhurdle]

01:13 PM on 06/26/2012

This survey is complete crapola. How do you weight the results by country if the scope is "worldwide"? It would take a massive analysis coupled with massive sampling to determine this result. This is no more than propaganda with some hidden form of quid pro quo.

[Highball]

12:27 PM on 06/26/2012

Not too many surprises here, really.

[ronruthnik]

11:34 AM on 06/26/2012

"I can't respect a company whose head wants to raise my taxes," the president of Adrian Day Asset Management in Annapolis, Maryland, tells Barron's, calling out Buffett's "pseudo-folksiness." - Yea, but I can respect a guy who has the common sense and rational to put forward what is essentially a much fairer taxation system. Considering that YOU CEO's or Co. Presidents make millions upon millions, you sit on it, you do not ‘make jobs’ as the Repubs argue, and there is no end to your personal greed. You need to be taxed, and taxed high, as Andrew Carnegie YOU ARE NOT!!

[Samcat604]

12:02 PM on 06/26/2012

Control spending - then we'll talk about taxes. Increasing taxes will do nothing except increase spending.

Control the border - then we'll talk immigration. Without a border, amnesty will do nothing but invite more people in.

We could do this for so many issues...

[DasBoatless]

01:01 PM on 06/26/2012

You obviously haven't looked at the facts of the last 3 Democratic administrations. All 3 REDUCED spending and deficits, especially in comparison to their GOP counterparts....

Obama has deported more people to date than the previous administration did in 8 years. With reduced border crossing we now have a negative gain aka loss of illegals....

[ronruthnik]

08:42 PM on 06/26/2012

Then tell those dastardly Repub Congressmen and their henchmen to get off
their butts and pass the Presidents proposals!

[redleg69]

01:12 PM on 06/26/2012

here's a fair tax system, everyone pays fed income tax

[vandegrasse]

11:47 PM on 06/26/2012

Even those who don't who don't have a dime?

[heldt666]

11:30 AM on 06/26/2012

JP Morgan is still on the list?

[PointOhOhOne]

11:52 AM on 06/26/2012

It's in my top 10

[myliu888]

12:33 PM on 06/26/2012

Jamie Dimon is one of the good guys.

[drakkusshadows]

10:21 AM on 06/26/2012

I don't believe this article at all. I guess anyone can publish their own opinion. I actually think less of people who eat at a McDonald's. They take advantage of parents by marketing schemes to lure kids into their restaurants to eat such nasty, nasty food.

[myliu888]

10:24 AM on 06/26/2012

McDonald's is a great operation - I love their food and it is a great investment !!!

[Dan Crabtree]

12:18 PM on 06/26/2012

really they suck, and what is that thing they call diet-coke?

[bjwjr]

11:04 AM on 06/26/2012

Granted, the food isn't the most nutritional fast food to buy but nasty? I guess I'ld expect a review like that from a dumpster diver.

[brun4life84]

11:19 AM on 06/26/2012

McD's is pretty bad. I guess if you enjoy fat terrible grade meat, that is the place to go.

[keithslayter]

11:24 AM on 06/26/2012

Huh have you read anything on mcds food or food prep? It is nasty an id rather eat from a dumbster then have my food washed with bleach, not to mention the chicken nuggets yuck disgusting what they are getting you to eat, but to each his own I suppose.

[Jennifer Malcom]

10:12 AM on 06/26/2012

I wonder how much these companies paid to be named "most respected"?