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

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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