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| By Jim Nelson |
Somewhat lost in yesterday’s giant bounce was news that the “Trillion Dollar Club” received a new member.
Eli Lilly (LLY) surpassed the $1 trillion market cap threshold as it continues to thrive from the sales success of its diabetes and weight-loss drugs.
It became the 11th company to hit that mark and only the second non-tech business — joining Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (BRKB) in that even smaller club.
Now that we are approaching a dozen of these trillion-dollar giants in the public market — which could be reached if Walmart (WMT) continues its recent run — let’s look elsewhere for a more interesting milestone.
In the private markets, the most watched list is the “Unicorn Club.”
These are pre-IPO companies with recent fundraising that gives them a valuation above $1 billion.
But even here, the club has gotten too big. CB Insights puts that figure at 1,300 unicorns right now.
We can look up from here, however.
Companies worth $10 billion are called decacorns. And ones worth $100 billion or more are hectocorns.
Here is where we narrow down the list.
By CB Insights’ count, there are only five hectocorns:
- OpenAI
- SpaceX
- ByteDance
- Anthropic
- Databricks
There are dozens more $100 billion-plus companies. But they haven’t raised money at that valuation. So, just these five.
Considering the makeup of the “Trillion Dollar Club,” it’s not too shocking that its elite private-market counterpart “Hectocorn Club” is chocked full of tech and AI giants.
OpenAI was the company that brought AI to the world with ChatGPT.
Anthropic is another AI firm that’s backed by Google and operates Claude.
A few of these — including SpaceX and Databricks — have flirted with the idea of going public.
And as our own startup specialist noted this week, those flirtations could soon turn into reality.
He gave you three reasons why now is a great time for companies like these … but even better for investors like you and me:
“This is a very exciting time to be an early investor in tomorrow’s hottest companies for three reasons:
“1. Because it always is. Startup investing offers some of the largest potential returns you’ll ever see …
“2. With the government back open, the SEC can get back to work putting its final stamp of approval for many pending IPOs before the end of the year.
“3. I will participate in a special $706 Billion Private Deal Briefing on Tuesday, Nov. 25, at 2 p.m. Eastern.”
I haven’t even seen what Chris is about to reveal on Tuesday. But I can tell you that he’s excited about it.
Grab your spot to that event here.
After you do, you’ll get an email with more details about Chris’ exciting news.
Of course, the rest of your experts are excited about their own corners of the market.
Here’s what they want you to know ahead of Thanksgiving week …
Warren Buffett’s Silent Warning
Warren Buffett told us that he’s “going quiet” after he leaves Berkshire Hathaway in younger hands at the end of the year. But Nilus Mattive points to the dozens of archived annual shareholder letters to fill in this gap … and one loud parting shot, even with his silence.
The Biggest Launch Since the Genius Act
As traditional finance and crypto markets continue to slam together, Jurica Dujmovic shares the latest and largest news since this summer’s historic Genius Act was passed.
The Last Bastion of Value in the S&P 500
Nilus isn’t the only one concerned about market valuations. Sean Brodrick narrowed his own search for value and found the last sector left … and a great way for you to play it.
Apple’s Ecosystem Makes It Better Than an AI Play
iPhone giant Apple almost lost one of its best customers this year. But Michael A. Robinson found his love for the company again … and he went on TV to share the news.
Have a great weekend!
Jim Nelson
Managing Editor, Weiss Ratings Daily
