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PaperclipPerfector  27d ago (text post)   2278 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for December 22, 2024

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

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It probably wouldn't look too different.

Actually, according to this (not-very-trustworthy-looking) website, it would look quite different.

Very lazy assessment of the 28 companies that are in the top twenty of either capitalization or profit

Some notable differences:

  • Apple: 12.9 % of capitalization, 6.5 % of profit (6.4-% decrease)

  • Nvidia: 11.2 % of capitalization, 4.0 % of profit (7.3-% decrease)

  • Microsoft: 10.9 % of capitalization, 6.0 % of profit (4.9-% decrease)

  • Amazon: 7.9 % of capitalization, 3.4 % of profit (4.6-% decrease)

  • Saudi Aramco: 6.0 % of capitalization, 12.0 % of profit (6.0-% increase)

  • Berkshire Hathaway: 3.3 % of capitalization, 7.6 % of profit (4.4-% increase)

  • CEMIG: 0.0 % of capitalization, 14.2 % of profit (14.2-% increase)

  • Toyota: 0.8 % of capitalization, 2.3 % of profit (1.5-% increase)

If you pick the most extreme companies by any two metrics, even highly correlated ones, they'll exhibit that kind of divergence, because the tails come apart (you'll also select for anomalies like data entry errors or fraud).

No, this isn't accurate.

Saudi Aramco, CEMIG?, and Toyota are not members of the S&P 500.

Also, the numbers for CEMIG defy logic and are likely the result of some sort of currency translation or data entry error.

Sincerely and Bah Humbug! -Ebeneezer Scrooge

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