Companies that upset employees tend not to get total effort from their staff. On the flip side, businesses that are fantastic to work for receive more effort from employees because workers believe in a mutual benefit. Investors can capitalize on this insight when researching and purchasing stocks: companies that treat their employees well are likely to be solid investments.
Luckily, this can be an easy metric to find. Over the past 25 years, Fortune has put out a list of the 100 best companies to work for, informing future employees and investors of the businesses that treat their workers well. Salesforce (CRM -0.57%), Nvidia (NVDA -10.01%), and Accenture (ACN 0.28%) all land among the top 10 best companies on the list. Fittingly, these three companies have proven to be fantastic investments over the past decade and have solid prospects.
Image source: Getty Images.
1. Salesforce
One of the original software-as-a-service companies, Salesforce assists with customer relationship management (CRM). Salesforce describes this as "a technology for managing all your company's relationships interactions with customers and potential customers." Its tools include marketing, sales management, and customer service, making its product vital to customer retention. Nearly every business needs some form of CRM, whether it's conducted through software like Salesforce or through personal interaction.
For its 2022 fiscal year (ending Jan. 31), Salesforce posted $26.5 billion in sales, up 25% year over year. While the company's operating margin broke just over even at 2.1% according to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), its non-GAAP operating margin was 20% for the whole year. Management expects fiscal year 2023 sales growth of 21% with a non-GAAP operating margin of 20%.
Salesforce has solidified itself as the top CRM software for large companies, but among smaller businesses, it has a fierce competitor in HubSpot (HUBS -2.82%). Still, the most significant contracts are with the largest companies, where Salesforce reigns supreme.
Trading at just under seven times sales -- the lowest ratio since the pandemic-drive stock market crash in March 2020 -- Salesforce is an excellent buy at these levels.
2. Nvidia
Nvidia produces the best graphics processing units (GPUs) in the world. This hardware can power gaming computers and data centers, and instruct artificial intelligence. Of the 500 most powerful computers known to exist, 70% use Nvidia's products. Moving forward, 90% of new systems are slated to use Nvidia technologies. According to Fortune, the company's employees have two scheduled days off per quarter and unlimited vacation days; programs like this drive high employee satisfaction.
Of the three companies listed in this article, Nvidia is the strongest when it comes to financials. For the fiscal year 2022 (ending Jan. 30), the company grew revenue by 61% to $26.9 billion while increasing net income by 125% to $9.8 billion -- a 36% margin. The company expects its Data Center Division to drive first-quarter growth in fiscal year 2023, as this sector is projected to outperform the 11% quarter-over-quarter growth seen in the most recent period.
Nvidia GPUs. Image source: Nvidia.
Over the past two years, Nvidia usually traded for about 80 times earnings, but investors can currently get into this stock at the much lower price of 55 times earnings. The chipmaker is a solid investment at this price, down more than 35% from its high. This is prime time for investors to take advantage of a high-growth company.
3. Accenture
Accenture runs a worldwide consulting business, incorporated in Dublin but with operations in multiple geographic locations across several industries. It's a highly diversified company, with expertise in cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, and financial services.
The multifaceted company closed the second quarter of its 2022 fiscal year on Feb. 28. In this period, Accenture generated $15 billion in revenue, growing at a 24% clip in U.S. dollars or 28% in local currency. Excluding a one-time investment gain, its earnings per share (EPS) rose 25% year over year. Accenture set a booking record in this most recent quarter, bringing in $19.6 billion in outsourced consulting work.
Compared to Salesforce and Nvidia, which are slightly newer companies, Accenture returns a significant portion of its profits to shareholders through dividends and buybacks. With a dividend yield of 1.2% and the authority to repurchase $4.6 billion in stock (over 2% of its market cap) left, Accenture makes an excellent long-term investment.
Long-term performance
Over the past five years, each of these three companies has outperformed the market.
CRM total return level. Data by YCharts.
Investing in the most outstanding companies to work for has been a wise investment strategy. The list is full of other great ideas; take a look to inspire new investments for your investment portfolio.
