America’s largest companies are fueling inequality, says new study

US-based corporations are making more money than ever before, and they’re putting that money right back into shareholders’ pockets.

A version of this story first appeared in CNN Business’ Before the Bell newsletter. Not a subscriber? You can sign up right here. You can listen to an audio version of the newsletter by clicking the same link. US-based corporations are making more money than ever before, and they’re putting that money right back into shareholders’ pockets. One of the reasons the S&P 500 is up more than 10% so far this year is because investors expect dividends — a redistribution of profits from a company to its shareholders — to get bigger. Dividend payouts to shareholders by companies in the S&P 500 reached a new record in 2023, and that number is projected to grow in 2024, according to data from the CME Group. What’s happening: The 200 largest publicly traded companies in the United States saw their combined net profits soar to $1.25 trillion in 2022, a gain of 63% from 2018. About 90%, or $1.1 trillion, of that profit went to shareholders through stock buybacks and dividend payments, according to new research from anti-poverty organization Oxfam International. At the same time, the study found, only 10 of those 200 companies have made public statements in support of paying a living wage.