Novo Nordisk, the most valuable company in the EU

The Danish company Novo Nordisk has a market capitalization of over 560 billion dollars, being the most valuable company in the European Union, according to data from companiesmarketcap.com, taken over by visualcapitalist.com.

The pharmaceutical giant specializes in diabetes and weight loss drugs. The demand for two of its products, Ozempic and Wegovy, has increased due to the efficiency they have demonstrated in the process of losing weight, and a shortage has even been observed in the United States.

The data presented by companiesmarketcap.com is rounded and updated as of April 15, 2024. The ranking includes top listed companies with a market value of at least $4 billion.

The mentioned source places in second place the French luxury giant LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA, which owns brands such as Tiffany, Christian Dior and TAG Heuer. Thus, LVMH is the second largest company in the EU by market capitalization, with 422 billion dollars.

On the third position is ASML Holland, which produces essential equipment for chip manufacturers, with a value of 382 billion dollars.

The quoted source mentions that in the region there is a big difference between EU member states and their most valuable companies. For example, Novo Nordisk from Denmark and LVMH from France are each worth over 420 and over 550 billion dollars, respectively. At the same time, however, some countries do not even have a listed company worth over a billion dollars.

In fact, only 12 EU countries (less than half of the total) are home to the top 100 most valuable companies in the bloc.

Germany's SAP business software maker follows in the aforementioned ranking with a market value of $214 billion, then Ireland's IT group Accenture - with $197 billion, Spain's Inditex retail company, which owns the Zara brand, with $147 billion, Belgian brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev with $116 billion, Swedish industrial equipment maker Atlas Copco with $80 billion, Italian car company Ferrari with $76 billion, Nordea Bank from Finland, with 40 billion dollars. We also find in this top Verbund AG, an energy company from Austria, with 26 billion dollars; Tenaris, a manufacturer of equipment for the oil and gas sector in Luxembourg, with 22 billion dollars; Czech Republic's CEZ Group, an energy company, with $20 billion; PKN Orlen, a Polish energy company, with $20 billion; EDP Group, an energy company from Portugal, with $16 billion; Hidroelectrica, energy company from Romania, with 13 billion dollars; Eurobank of Greece, with 7 billion dollars; MOL Group Hungary, energy company, with 7 billion dollars; Zagrebacka Banka Croatia, with 6 billion dollars; and Krka, pharmaceutical company from Slovenia, with 4 billion dollars.