If You Put $10K in These Stocks 10 Years Ago, Here’s How Much You’d Have Now

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It’s very typical advice: The sooner you invest, the more money you’ll have at retirement.

But how much difference does a decade make? Based on our back-of-the-napkin math, $10,000 split in 2012 across what are currently the 10 biggest companies in the U.S. would be worth more than $550,000 now.

That’s assuming you don’t touch the money or add any more. It’s also assuming you had a crystal ball — only three of today’s top 10 were also in the top 10 a decade ago.

Nonetheless, it’s an educational exercise and may encourage you to think more about your retirement fund. Here’s what $1,000 invested 10 years ago in each of America’s current biggest companies would be worth today.

Methodology

Stock market trendline
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We compared stock prices for the 10 largest companies in America as determined by the Fortune 500 for 2022.

We calculated return on investment using the day-high prices for Jan. 31, 2012, and May 27, 2022, with the exception of Amazon, for which the day-high price for June 6 (post-split) was used. All calculations were rounded.

1. Walmart Inc.

Walmart Inc. headquarters
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Stock symbol: WMT

Price in 2012: $61.57 per share

How much $1,000 bought you a decade ago: 16.2 shares

Price in 2022: $128.62 per share

How much you’d have in 2022 if you invested $1,000 a decade ago: $2,084

2. Amazon.com Inc.

Amazon.com Inc. headquarters
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Stock symbol: AMZN

Price in 2012: $9.78 per share

How much $1,000 bought you a decade ago: 102.2 shares

Price in 2022: $128.99 per share

How much you’d have in 2022 if you invested $1,000 a decade ago: 2,044 shares worth $263,656 (reflects a 20 for 1 split in 2022)

3. Apple Inc.

Apple Inc. headquarters
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Stock symbol: AAPL

Price in 2012: $16.37 per share

How much $1,000 bought you a decade ago: 61.1 shares

Price in 2022: $149.68 per share

How much you’d have in 2022 if you invested $1,000 a decade ago: 1,710.8 shares worth $256,073 (reflects two splits: 7 for 1 in 2014, and 4 for 1 in 2020)

4. CVS Health Corp.

CVS
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Stock symbol: CVS

Price in 2012: $41.99 per share

How much $1,000 bought you a decade ago: 23.8 shares

Price in 2022: $98.10 per share

How much you’d have in 2022 if you invested $1,000 a decade ago: $2,335

5. UnitedHealth Group Inc.

Unitedhealthcare sign
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Stock symbol: UNH

Price in 2012: $52.88 per share

How much $1,000 bought you a decade ago: 18.9 shares

Price in 2022: $507.11 per share

How much you’d have in 2022 if you invested $1,000 a decade ago: $9,584

6. Exxon Mobil Corp.

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Stock symbol: XOM

Price in 2012: $85.34 per share

How much $1,000 bought you a decade ago: 11.7 shares

Price in 2022: $97.93 per share

How much you’d have in 2022 if you invested $1,000 a decade ago: $1,146

7. Berkshire Hathaway Inc.

Berkshire Hathaway home services
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Stock symbol: BRK.B (Class B)

Price in 2012: $79.26 per share

How much $1,000 bought you a decade ago: 12.6 shares

Price in 2022: $319.24 per share

How much you’d have in 2022 if you invested $1,000 a decade ago: $4,022

8. Alphabet Inc.

Google headquarters
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Stock symbol: GOOGL (Class A)

Price in 2012: $292.28 per share

How much $1,000 bought you a decade ago: 3.4 shares

Price in 2022: $2,246.36 per share

How much you’d have in 2022 if you invested $1,000 a decade ago: $7,638

9. McKesson Corp.

McKesson Corp. headquarters
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Stock symbol: MCK

Price in 2012: $83.29 per share

How much $1,000 bought you a decade ago: 12 shares

Price in 2022: $336.68 per share

How much you’d have in 2022 if you invested $1,000 a decade ago: $4,040

10. AmerisourceBergen Corp.

AmerisourceBergen
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Stock symbol: ABC

Price in 2012: $39.68 per share

How much $1,000 bought you a decade ago: 25.2 shares

Price in 2022: $157.04 per share

How much you’d have in 2022 if you invested $1,000 a decade ago: $3,957