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Industry: Electronics

Samsung started out in 1938 as a trading company听that later invested profits into electronics development (among other industries). The company had a听quick response to its听 in previous years: Production of the culprit, the Galaxy Note 7 smartphone, was permanently stopped in the name of consumer safety. Recently in听2018 Samsung听created QLED (quantum dot light-emitting diode)听TVs with ambient modes that specifically did , which is a privacy concern.

Industry: Petroleum refining

In the eyes of many, Exxon has come a long way from the 1989 oil spill and that made the company infamous. Created in 1882, Exxon made a听 (as opposed to overseas) and a public .

Industry: Securities and asset management

Charles Schwab was founded in 1971, and in 2018 became more open about its desire to for people who wanted to invest with them. The company also saw massive .

Industry: Consumer credit card and related services

Founded in 1966, Mastercard wrapped up its less-than-admirable projects in 2018 (including a and association with a ). They earned back some goodwill by working with and even . It also to comply with government regulations.

Industry: Consumer food products

Since 1866, Nestl茅 has often been associated in people's minds with chocolate candy. But they made the bold decision to in 2018 and move into . They also debuted a 听in the U.K. and Ireland using a new sugar-reducing technology.听

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Industry: Health care鈥攊nsurance and managed care

was the name of the game for UnitedHealth, originally founded in 1977. Their health Optum is attributed as a .

Industry: Food and drug stores

Named one of , Publix has been wooing the local market since 1930. They expanded into more , , and for employees. They even dropped support for a after protests at their stores.

Industry: Internet services and retailing

The youngest company on this list (founded in 2004), Facebook tweaked the news feed in 2018 to show more news from people than brands. Though the听company has recently dealt with several reputational challenges: the听,, and .

Industry: Construction and farm machinery

Caterpillar, founded in 1925, had the foresight to debut in the . The same year, caused their stock to nosedive, and it didn't help that the construction company had a .听

Industry: Consumer credit card and related services

Visa's place on this list could be slightly surprising to some:听 was only the beginning of bad times for Visa. The company, founded in 1958,听has faced and a #MeToo scandal surrounding its spokesman Morgan Freeman.听

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Industry: Consumer food products

In 2018 PepsiCo , its first female CEO since its founding in 1965. She is credited for encouraging the company to invest in healthier products, such as Bare Foods and the .听PepsiCo has also made contributions toward ending world hunger.

Industry: Information technology services

IBM may have started in 1911, but it broke the record for in 2018. IBM debuted a听 with humans. The company听has seen听; though they also 听in 2018.

Industry: Soaps and cosmetics

Founded in 1930, Unilever saw . Unilever has spoke out听, has made a听swift move into the , and has threatened to pull advertising from digital networks .

Industry: Apparel

and a over Adidas recently. But the company founded in 1949 definitely gets points for innovation, leaning into , and supplying the internationally famous .

Industry: Food services

McDonald's has had a mixed modern legacy, and . But they also have听 and .听

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Industry: Information technology services

Accenture's slogan when it was founded in 1989 may as well have been about helpfulness. cemented Accenture in a position of helping companies streamline their operations. They initiated new open and won an .

Industry: Health care鈥攑harmacy and other services

CVS Health may never have imagined in 1982 that it'd be merging with . This move, on top of pushing virtual care and a , highlights positive strides made by the company.听

Industry: Internet services and retailing

Alibaba after a of the year. Founded in 1999, they have showed a听slow and steady , pausing to diversify by buying things like stakes in an .

Industry: Delivery

Starting in 1907 on foot and bicycle, UPS is now known for delivering packages in their signature brown trucks. But 2018 was a year in which and they a major labor strike.听

Industry: General merchandisers

Target's been around since 1902, and it aimed to impress in 2018. The company for its employees and experimented with (even though it ate into their earnings).

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Industry: Soaps and cosmetics

Procter & Gamble may have earned admiration from other businesses for its . But this company, which has been around since 1837, earned that comeback through .听

Industry: Motor vehicles

Toyota had to and in 2018,听but the company experienced and earned favor from car nuts by and winning the Le Mans 24 hour car race. An accomplishment for a company that's been making cars since 1933.

Industry: Motor vehicles

The car company had a rough 2018: The company's cars were听 and . The company also听 and decided听to leave the .

Industry: Airlines

The airline company,听founded in 1930, reported , but they weren't exactly universally admired by consumers. The company suffered PR trouble due to a and restricted in the same year.

Industry: Chemicals

Founded in 1902, 3M posted . But even worse were the , from products, , and even possibly connected to the company.

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Industry: Megabanks

Goldman Sachs, a company founded in 1869, pledged to . But they also got caught up in a and fired an听.

Industry: General merchandisers

Founded in 1962, Walmart听 for their employees and . Though they also closed and in top-earning manager roles.

Industry: Insurance鈥攑roperty and casualty

USAA, founded in 1922, earned their spot on this list听 and ; they also offered听 during the 2018 government shutdown. In 2018 the company announced plans to donate $40 million to charity鈥�1% of its pre-tax income.听

Industry: Hotels, casinos, and resorts

Founded in 1927, Marriott saw incredible growth in both net income and acquiring . However, they also experienced a recent听 and a .听

Industry: Securities and asset management

Associated with the and founded in 1988 at the height of the "" era, BlackRock took a turn toward in 2018. They also offered that would enable their customers to avoid supporting gun companies if they wish.

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Industry: Specialty retailers

Home Depot has听 and has increasing its funding for . Experts point to its as a secret to its success, though, there have definitely been changes made since its founding in 1978.

Industry: General merchandisers

Nordstrom experienced a听 and one of its Nordstrom Rack stores had听. The same family that couldn't convince the board to .

Industry: Aerospace and defense

The plane giant founded in 1916 started 2018 with an ostentatious goal: to build a new plane . They didn't quite make their goal鈥攖hey were short by 鈥攂ut they finished the year and issuing .

Industry: Airlines

Named in 2018, Singapore Airlines was founded in 1947 and was once nicknamed the 鈥淨ueen of the Skies.鈥� Their recent brand revamp was fueled by , and they can now claim the rights to the .

Industry: Pharmaceuticals

Founded in 1886, Johnson & Johnson this years set itself apart by collaborating with to tackle areas in need of medical research. However, they also had a听scandal surrounding 鈥攁long with an allegation听that executives had known about it for decades.

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Industry: Consumer credit card and related services

American Express' stock reached its , attributed to its than its other credit peers. and an interest in artificial intelligence to aid customer service also tipped the scales. The company, founded in 1850, also became the first credit card company to .

Industry: Beverages

Coca-Cola was set to from previous years, restructuring things from within and acquiring companies based around and . Coca-Cola founders back in 1886听likely never imagined the company would get into听.

Industry: Computer software

Founded in 1999, customer relationship management software company Salesforce enjoyed an incredible . They achieved this by , supposedly to serve their customers' needs. Founder Marc Benioff spoke out against and .

Industry: Apparel

2018 was the year when Nike distinguished itself with and . In spite of a , Nike sold the and continued a distinct legacy originating from its founding in 1964.

Industry: General merchandisers

Costco was named the in 2018, an achievement for the warehouse retail company founded in 1983. Despite problems within the , Costco and experienced growth as the year went on.

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Industry: Airlines

With , , and the , 2018 was a year in which Southwest made changes to serve its customers better. It also marked the first time Southwest had i since its founding in 1967.

Industry: Delivery

FedEx used extra cash influx to and when things became hard. They also borrowed money to ensure that the .

Industry: Megabanks

JPMorgan Chase as consumers听know it originated in 1799 and became hated in 2008 due to ties to the . In 2018, the company听indicated听, in addition to fulfilling predictions of . It also used extra money from a tax cut to .

Industry: Entertainment

In spite of and maybe even in part because of , Netflix has expanded its market share of entertainment enough to . Not bad for one of the youngest companies on this list: They only broke into the scene in 1997.

Industry: Internet services and retailing

The founders of Alphabet back in 1998 may have never pictured a . The company boasted and additional .

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Industry: Computer software

2018 was maybe one of the best years for Microsoft since its founding in 1975. The company's stock soared, partly due to more ;听they also had time to announce a , run a , and expand its .

Industry: Food services

An incident in 2018 led Starbucks' customers to wonder . The company鈥攚hich has been serving up coffee since 1971鈥攈andled the scandal in what . They also sidestepped another with their .

Industry: Entertainment

2018 was a fantastic year for Disney, founded in 1923 by Walt Disney鈥攖he company was approved to acquire . Disney also pulled off the release of 鈥�,鈥澨�鈥�,鈥� and 鈥溾�� all in one year.

Industry: Insurance鈥攑roperty and casualty

Berkshire Hathaway may have been founded in 1839, but Warren Buffett (the highly regarded financier at the top of the company) has only been running the show since 1965. He led the company to a good year in 2018 and was explicit about how the company was .

Industry: Services and retailing

Amazon has been at the center of听public debate with the听听in New York City. However听the company, founded in 1994, with its original content,听validating听recent investments. The Washington Post (owned by Jeff Bezos, personally) also .

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Industry: Computers

Apple has prized itself on innovation since 1976. In 2018, they offerings and resumed their with AirPods. They also responded in a generally favored way to a .