The ranking measure: Ranked by 12-month growth in total assets (fastest first; the slowest growing and shrinking companies are at the foot of the table), from SEC filings, with revenue growth alongside. Acquisition flag: goodwill rose by more than 5% of the year-ago total assets, a sign that a deal rather than internal investment drove the growth.

Who is included: Passes data-quality checks; revenue of at least $100M; total assets reported a year apart; not a bank, insurer or REIT.

A new edition is published each calendar quarter; past editions are kept unchanged. Observations, not recommendations — a position on this ranking is a description of reported figures, never advice.

Research cited

  • Cooper, M. J., Gulen, H., & Schill, M. J. (2008). Asset growth and the cross-section of stock returns. Journal of Finance.
  • Fama, E. F., & French, K. R. (2008). Dissecting anomalies. Journal of Finance.