British Columbia’s top 100 public companies didn’t skip a beat over the past year despite the pandemic that shook the global economy.
Average revenue for the top 100 has remained essentially the same over the past three years, hovering around $1 billion. While average revenue grew only 0.5% over the past year, that was a significant improvement compared with the 0.8% decline during the previous year.
Median revenue did not reflect the same boost. It fell 7.4% to $177.7 million in 2020 from $191.8 million in 2019. This suggests that revenue for smaller companies lower on the list declined while the revenue generated by their larger counterparts grew.
No. 98 Aurora Solar Technologies Inc. recorded the largest one-year revenue increase: 652.4% to $3.3 million in 2020 compared with $438,000 in 2019.
Average asset value at the top 100 public companies also followed a consistent growth path. It increased roughly 4% for the past three years, including 4.26% in 2020.
The median asset value fell 7.4% over the past year and 23% over the past five years. This suggests that asset growth reported by a few outliers is pulling the average up while most companies on the list are experiencing asset declines.
Unlike revenue and asset value, net income for the top 100 companies has been on a roller-coaster ride. After plummeting 82.4% in 2019 to an average of $18.9 million from $107.7 million in 2018, average net income grew 191.5% to $55.1 million in 2020. Median net income followed a roughly similar trend, declining to a low in 2019 and rebounding somewhat in 2020.
Of the companies that appeared on the list in 2021 and 2017, 50 rose in rank, while 10 fell and seven remained the same.
No. 67 Photon Control Inc. (TSX:PHO) moved furthest up the list, jumping 22 spots from 89 in 2017. This was largely because of a 101% revenue increase, most of which occurred over the past year.
In 2020, Photon revenue grew 97.6% to $64.7 million from $32.7 million in 2019. No. 59 Conifex Timber Inc. (TSX:CFF) had the steepest decline on the list, slipping 20 spots from 39 in 2017. This was largely the result of a 68.6% drop in revenue, to $128.7 million in 2020 from $409.3 million in 2016.
Since 2017, No. 55 Imperial Metals Corp. (TSX:III) and No. 26 Western Forest Products Inc. (TSX:WEF) declined in rank on BIV’s list despite increasing their revenue over the past year. Their 2020 growth was not enough to make up for declines during the previous years. In 2020, Imperial Metals’ revenue increased 106.2% to $148.1 million, but was unable to recover from its 83.2% decline over the previous four years. The company’s revenue decreased to $71.8 million in 2019 from $428.2 million in 2016. As a result, it dropped 17 spaces from No. 38 in 2017. •
