Can a high Return on Equity be a sign of weakness rather than strength?

Yes. A firm with thin or negative book equity can post very high Return on Equity figures that reflect balance sheet stress more than operating excellence. Heavy buybacks funded by debt shrink equity while increasing interest expense, lifting the ratio even as the underlying business treads water. Decomposing Return on Equity into margin, turnover, and leverage reveals whether the figure is supported by profitable operations or manufactured through financial engineering.

Why does the DuPont decomposition matter for interpreting Return on Equity?

DuPont splits Return on Equity into three drivers: net margin, asset turnover, and equity multiplier. Two firms with identical Return on Equity can reach it in very different ways, one through fat margins and the other through high leverage on thin margins. The decomposition makes those paths visible and forces a more honest read of what Return on Equity is actually telling you about operating strength.

How does Return on Equity compare across industries?

Return on Equity varies structurally by industry because capital intensity, regulatory constraints, and typical financing differ widely. Asset-light services and software firms often show higher ratios than capital-intensive manufacturers or utilities, not because they are better businesses but because their equity base is smaller relative to earnings. Meaningful comparisons stay within a sector, with multi-year averages preferred over single-year snapshots to smooth cyclical effects.

Top 100 Stocks by Return on Equity

Top companies ranked by return on equity, latest annual filings.

What Return on Equity Means for US-listed Companies

Return on Equity divides net income by shareholder equity and measures how efficiently management turns the capital entrusted by owners into profit. Across US-listed firms the ratio offers a compact view of capital productivity, comparable across industries on a common footing, which is why it has been one of the most cited single numbers in fundamental analysis for as long as that discipline has existed.

Why Return on Equity Can Mislead

Return on Equity rewards durable profitability supported by pricing power, yet the ratio is easy to distort. The DuPont decomposition splits it into margin, asset turnover, and leverage, so a firm can lift reported Return on Equity simply by adding debt. Buybacks shrink the equity denominator, inflating the ratio without any real operating improvement, and companies with negative book value produce figures that are mathematically meaningless.

What to Read Alongside

Pair Return on Equity with Net Income to see the numerator in absolute terms, Long-term Debt to gauge how much leverage is inflating the ratio, and Gross Margin to judge the underlying earnings quality.

Data as of FY 2025 100 companies Rhea AI

#	Symbol	Company	Sector
1	GDDY	GoDaddy Inc.	Technology	406.79%	$11.44B
2	UNIT	Uniti Group Inc.	Real Estate	343.07%	$2.33B
3	VRSK	Verisk Analytics, Inc.	Industrials	293.95%	$24.70B
4	TNET	TriNet Group, Inc.	Industrials	287.04%	$3.06B
5	CLX	Clorox Company	Consumer Defensive	252.34%	$12.77B
6	IT	Gartner, Inc.	Technology	227.88%	$11.67B
7	RH	RH	Consumer Cyclical	205.94%	$3.56B
8	CHH	Choice Hotels International, Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	204.11%	$4.94B
9	MA	Mastercard Incorporated	Financial Services	193.46%	$504.54B
10	LYV	Live Nation Entertainment Inc.	Communication Services	183.01%	$42.35B
11	RRR	Red Rock Resorts, Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	170.72%	$3.68B
12	APP	AppLovin Corporation	Communication Services	156.18%	$112.33B
13	AAPL	Apple Inc.	Technology	151.91%	$4559.37B
14	FTAI	FTAI Aviation Ltd.	Industrials	149.94%	$22.72B
15	FTNT	Fortinet, Inc.	Technology	149.77%	$117.47B
16	STX	Seagate Technology Holdings PLC	Technology	146.93%	$193.32B
17	ENR	Energizer Holdings, Inc.	Industrials	140.67%	$1.48B
18	WEN	The Wendy's Company	Consumer Cyclical	140.63%	$1.41B
19	BLKB	Blackbaud, Inc.	Technology	135.21%	$2.10B
20	KMB	Kimberly-Clark Corporation	Consumer Defensive	134.55%	$36.14B
21	LNW	Light & Wonder, Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	112.65%	$7.03B
22	HD	Home Depot, Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	110.51%	$348.51B
23	UI	Ubiquiti Inc.	Technology	106.53%	$34.33B
24	FTDR	Frontdoor, Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	105.37%	$6.32B
25	EAT	Brinker International, Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	103.29%	$9.75B
26	COR	Cencora, Inc.	Healthcare	103.06%	$62.02B
27	SPG	Simon Property Group, Inc.	Real Estate	102.99%	$71.94B
28	VIK	Viking Holdings Ltd	Consumer Cyclical	102.39%	$47.38B
29	LVS	Las Vegas Sands Corp.	Consumer Cyclical	102.33%	$29.87B
30	EXPE	Expedia Group, Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	101.32%	$36.79B
31	SYY	Sysco Corporation	Consumer Defensive	99.89%	$40.37B
32	CPRI	Capri Holdings Limited	Consumer Cyclical	98.75%	$1.70B
33	MEDP	Medpace Holdings, Inc.	Healthcare	98.27%	$16.33B
34	ITW	Illinois Tool Works Inc.	Industrials	95.04%	$84.79B
35	NTAP	NetApp, Inc.	Technology	94.45%	$37.57B
36	MSI	Motorola Solutions, Inc.	Technology	89.38%	$78.46B
37	AMGN	Amgen Inc.	Healthcare	89.06%	$219.02B
38	LYFT	Lyft, Inc.	Technology	86.88%	$6.19B
39	LNG	Cheniere Energy Inc	Energy	85.84%	$54.89B
40	IBKR	Interactive Brokers Group, Inc.	Financial Services	81.24%	$38.76B
41	HESM	Hess Midstream LP	Energy	80.59%	$5.13B
42	ZTS	ZOETIS INC.	Healthcare	78.27%	$32.39B
43	LLY	Eli Lilly & Co.	Healthcare	77.78%	$1062.44B
44	BAH	Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corporation	Industrials	76.97%	$8.89B
45	NVDA	NVIDIA Corporation	Technology	76.33%	$5304.16B
46	KLAC	KLA Corporation	Technology	76.08%	$252.40B
47	MUSA	Murphy USA Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	75.48%	$9.90B
48	LMT	Lockheed Martin Corporation	Industrials	74.65%	$134.52B
49	ADP	Automatic Data Processing, Inc.	Technology	73.18%	$108.66B
50	AMT	American Tower Corporation	Real Estate	71.96%	$79.77B
51	BCO	The Brink's Company	Industrials	71.91%	$4.65B
52	BYD	Boyd Gaming Corporation	Consumer Cyclical	70.66%	$6.11B
53	MANH	Manhattan Associates, Inc.	Technology	69.88%	$11.11B
54	LII	Lennox International Inc.	Industrials	69.28%	$15.06B
55	MMM	3M Company	Industrials	69.12%	$93.20B
56	GFF	Griffon Corporation	Industrials	69.09%	$4.81B
57	HGTY	Hagerty, Inc.	Financial Services	67.43%	$1.38B
58	APAM	Artisan Partners Asset Management Inc.	Financial Services	66.15%	$3.06B
59	IDXX	IDEXX Laboratories, Inc.	Healthcare	65.99%	$46.48B
60	MTN	Vail Resorts, Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	65.96%	$5.23B
61	TRGP	Targa Resources Corp.	Energy	62.68%	$57.57B
62	VVV	Valvoline Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	62.25%	$4.55B
63	ADBE	Adobe Inc.	Technology	61.34%	$103.45B
64	MCO	Moody's Corporation	Financial Services	60.66%	$81.94B
65	PJT	PJT Partners Inc.	Financial Services	58.43%	$4.42B
66	LRCX	Lam Research Corporation	Technology	58.26%	$382.60B
67	WNC	Wabash National Corp.	Industrials	57.56%	$0.51B
68	LAMR	Lamar Advertising Company	Real Estate	57.30%	$16.24B
69	TDC	TERADATA CORPORATION	Technology	56.52%	$2.51B
70	WMG	Warner Music Group Corp.	Communication Services	56.41%	$13.83B
71	THC	Tenet Healthcare Corporation	Healthcare	56.09%	$20.66B
72	SHW	The Sherwin-Williams Company	Basic Materials	55.86%	$88.22B
73	ATMU	Atmus Filtration Technologies Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	54.80%	$4.45B
74	DRI	Darden Restaurants, Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	54.66%	$24.06B
75	AMP	Ameriprise Financial, Inc.	Financial Services	54.41%	$49.45B
76	CMG	Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	54.26%	$42.66B
77	TJX	The TJX Companies, Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	53.91%	$179.03B
78	V	VISA Inc.	Financial Services	52.91%	$691.68B
79	TREE	LendingTree, Inc.	Financial Services	52.65%	$0.45B
80	WSM	Williams-Sonoma, Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	52.24%	$29.07B
81	WU	The Western Union Company	Financial Services	52.16%	$2.23B
82	NRG	NRG Energy, Inc.	Utilities	51.40%	$25.03B
83	BLBD	Blue Bird Corporation	Industrials	50.00%	$2.09B
84	PEGA	Pegasystems Inc.	Technology	49.97%	$5.21B
85	BKE	The Buckle, Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	49.39%	$2.36B
86	NBR	Nabors Industries Ltd.	Energy	48.52%	$1.23B
87	PAYX	Paychex, Inc.	Technology	47.12%	$42.73B
88	GE	GE Aerospace	Industrials	46.60%	$388.62B
89	GWW	W.W. Grainger, Inc.	Industrials	45.66%	$60.41B
90	EBAY	eBay Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	45.30%	$48.90B
91	ATAT	Atour Lifestyle Holdings Limited	Consumer Cyclical	45.11%	$4.82B
92	CHWY	Chewy, Inc.	Consumer Cyclical	44.75%	$9.59B
93	GEV	GE Vernova Inc.	Industrials	43.69%	$266.41B
94	JBL	Jabil Inc.	Technology	43.42%	$36.12B
95	RCL	Royal Caribbean Group	Consumer Cyclical	42.52%	$85.73B
96	TSCO	Tractor Supply Company	Consumer Cyclical	42.46%	$17.88B
97	CON	Concentra Group Holdings Parent, Inc.	Healthcare	42.31%	$3.91B
98	GFI	Gold Fields Ltd ADR	Basic Materials	42.03%	$33.40B
99	FIX	Comfort Systems USA, Inc.	Industrials	41.76%	$60.31B
100	CAT	Caterpillar Inc.	Industrials	41.67%	$393.92B

Companies with return on equity above 500%, or shareholder equity below 1% of total assets, are excluded: when equity is near zero the ratio becomes unstable and unrepresentative. Ratio rankings also require at least $1B in annual revenue.

How this ranking is built

Companies are ranked by return on equity as reported in their most recent annual filing with the SEC. Figures shown are in US dollars (or percent, as noted), rounded to two decimals.

Source: annual 10-K / 20-F filings from companies trading on US exchanges (NYSE, Nasdaq, AMEX).
Fiscal year: whichever annual period the company has most recently filed. Fiscal years don't always align with the calendar year, so the "as of FY" stamp above reflects the most common year across the table.
Filtered out: warrants, preferred shares, and duplicate listings that share a parent company's financials.
Update cadence: refreshed as companies file new annual reports (typically within 60–90 days of fiscal year end).

Not financial advice. This is a research tool, not a recommendation.