While most companies struggle with a lack of cash, tech giants have the opposite: they have too much. Over the past five years, the top tech companies’ cash on hand grew by 38.43% from Q2 of 2019 to Q2 of 2024. It’s a staggering 237.13% growth over the past ten years, from Q2 of 2014 to Q2 of 2024.
Instead of rushing to give back to investors, these tech companies with the most cash on hand are okay with having billions of liquid assets.
For instance, Alphabet (GOOGL) currently has around $100 Billion cash reserves. The same goes for Apple at about $62 Billion and Microsoft at about $76 Billion. Instead of using the cash, they let it sit as liquid assets, accessible whenever they want or need it.
Interestingly, besides these giants, other tech companies do the same. While it’s expected for these companies to have many assets, it’s interesting to know why they hold cash.
Top Tech Companies Companies with Most Cash (2023)
It’s usual and even expected to see tech companies with positive cash flow. As an example, the tech sector ranks first among others in the S&P 500 with an index weighting of 32.9%. The rest of the sectors have only 12.5% and lower index weighting.
Moreover, among the top 10 S&P 500 companies by market cap, seven are tech companies. Thus, it’s unsurprising that most prominent tech companies have a lot of cash.
Using this tool, you can check out the individual trajectory of the top tech companies with the most cash reserves:
The big five tech companies have the most cash on hand. Apple, Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft have over $50 billion. Meanwhile, Alphabet has over $100 billion in cash reserves.
While they are tech companies with positive cash flow, some may see it as greed to hoard that much cash instead of splitting it as returns.
Below are the individual analyses of the tech companies’ cash on hand.
Alphabet Cash On Hand: Improving Business Over Workers
As the third-largest tech company by revenue, Alphabet tops the list of cash reserves. The company started in 2015 as a result of Google’s restructuring. Since then, it thrived as one of the most valuable companies in the world.
As of the second quarter, Alphabet or Google cash on hand for 2023 is over a hundred billion already. It decreased to $100.73 in the 2nd Quarter of 2024 but remains the highest cash on hand for tech companies.
Despite the continuous positive cash flow, Alphabet had the best days since 2020. The peak was in the 3rd quarter of 2021, and it’s also the time when the company had the most cash reserve.
Most of its cash flow and revenue came from advertising and investments. With Google dominating workflow systems, seeing the company on top is unsurprising.
Source: MacroTrends
The graph shows an enormous drop in Alphabet’s cash on hand since the second quarter of 2022. The stock dropped by around 34% as revenue slowed, and investors started worrying about weak search ads.
During that time, Alphabet also used its cash reserves to pay three fines that totaled $9.3 billion. The fines are due to the European Union’s complaint on antitrust grounds.
Despite such a huge fine, the company continued to have a steady revenue. With the cash reserves, Alphabet’s services continued primarily Google’s operations.
| 📈 Alphabet’s priority is business before its workers. In January 2023, Alphabet laid off 12,000 employees to refocus on its core business and AI. Despite having $113.76 Billion cash on hand at that time, Alphabet still chose to lay off workers rather than use it for their goals. |
Microsoft Cash On Hand: Acquiring More Companies
Microsoft dominated the software industry since 1975. Until now, it remains one of the tech giants despite the competition. The company is the world’s largest software maker by revenue in 2022.
With Microsoft’s dominance in software, it enjoyed a steady cash flow. Such revenue comes from its products and services, something almost everyone knows. It is also enough to explain Microsoft’s cash reserve over the years.
Source: MacroTrends
Microsoft enjoyed a steadily increasing revenue over the last five years. However, you’ll see a downward spike in the company’s cash on hand, especially in the third quarter of 2023.
The company had around $144 Billion in cash reserves by the end of the third quarter of 2023, which became $81 Billion by the end of that year. Though unclear, the decline in cash reserves can be due to the company’s purchase of several entities.
Microsoft’s cash reserves go through highly liquid securities. These securities are also investment-grade and fixed-income. Besides these securities, the company has cash in US and foreign currencies.
| 📈 Microsoft spends its cash on hand to get bigger.Last October 13, 2023, Microsoft closed the deal to buy Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion. This company owns the franchise for popular games like Call of Duty, Candy Crush, and StarCraft. With its cash on hand, Microsoft bought this company to top the video game industry. |
Amazon Cash On Hand: Investing for Future Plans
Amazon has been one of the top tech giants that has influenced the economy and culture of the world since 1994. With dominance in e-commerce, advertising, and other sectors, it’s now one of the most valuable brands.
The success of Amazon paved the way for its steady positive cash flow. As a result, it also accumulated high amounts of cash reserves. Its primary revenue sources are product sales, seller services, and the rest.
Source: MacroTrends
Amazon’s past five-year revenue mirrors its cash on hand. For instance, the company faced a decline in revenue in the last two quarters of 2021 and the first two quarters of 2022, leading to lower cash.
The decline was due to the company’s investment in Rivian, an electric automaker. The Q1 2022 net loss was $3.8 billion or $7.56 a share. The operating revenue decreased to $3.7 billion in the first quarter of 2022. It’s a 55% decline from the same period in the previous year.
Nonetheless, Amazon gained more cash reserves again by the end of 2023, with $89 Billion cash on hand by the 2nd quarter of 2024.
| 📈 Amazon’s focus is on investing for its future.Despite having the highest revenue at over $500 Billion, Amazon only has $89 Billion cash on hand. The main reason is that it spends most of its profits investing in its future. By having access to cash, Amazon can pay for everything, including investments. This action also lowers their income taxes while expanding. |
Apple Cash On Hand: Holding Cash Over Increasing Dividends
Founded in 1976, Apple has become the most prominent company in market capitalization. Earning $394.3 billion in 2022, it’s also the most significant tech company by revenue.
As the largest manufacturing company by revenue, Apple belongs on the list. The company can quickly accumulate cash on hand with a positive cash flow. With over a billion iPhone users worldwide, the company’s iPhone sales covered almost 50% of the 2022 revenue.
Source: MacroTrends
The graph shows a steady decline in Apple’s cash on hand from 2019 to 2022. With $107 Billion in the last quarter of 2019, it went down to $48 Billion by the second quarter of 2022. While it rose again by the end of 2023, the company encountered a downward trend in its cash reserves the following year.
One of the common reasons for this steady decline is that Apple spends money on its research and development. The company’s goal is to invent new products and features, so it needs to have enough resources to fund such processes.
| 📈 Apple prefers hoarding cash rather than increasing dividends.With only a 0.54% annual dividend yield, Apple pays the lowest yield for its investors. Tech companies generally have low dividends. However, Apple offers the lowest yield despite having the highest net income at almost $100 billion. The company prefers to let its cash flow sit instead of returning the investor’s yields. |
Meta Cash On Hand: Future Planning for Metaverse
Meta is another tech giant running Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp. With the success of its platforms, it’s obvious how Meta enjoys a steady cash flow and gets a lot of cash on hand.
| 💡 Did You Know? In 2022, Instagram covered 45% of Meta’s total revenue. This number proves the strength of this social media platform and how vital it is to the success of the company. |
As of the second quarter of last year, Meta has at least $53.44 Billion in liquid assets. The steady revenue from its social media websites and mobile apps is the primary source of this cash.
Source: MacroTrends
Meta’s cash on hand drastically increased from the first quarter of 2023 to the second quarter of the same year. From $37 Billion, the company had $53 Billion cash on hand after only one quarter. It’s also a 32% increase year-over-year.
The company has turned a healthy 11% increase in revenue at that time. It shows that this company’s ad business has started to recover from the past year.
The current $58 billion cash on hand outweighs its liabilities of around $29 billion. Meta also has other liabilities amounting to $42 billion but still has receivables worth $12 billion. In such a case, Meta’s cash on hand balances its total liabilities.
| 📈 Meta prefers to pay for its ambitions rather than its employees.In November 2022, Meta laid off 10,000 workers to cut costs and increase efficiency. Around 21,000 workers lost their jobs despite having over $40 billion cash on hand. It shows that the company’s CEO focuses on the ambitious Metaverse monetization over its employees. |
Cisco Cash On Hand: Scaling Through Acquisitions
Over the years, Cisco has thrived as one of the most prominent tech companies worldwide. The company has enjoyed stability despite several months of declining growth.
The steady revenue from software-oriented offers, collaboration, and IoT helped it gain investments. It’s also why the company has a lot of cash on hand.
Source: MacroTrends
The graph shows how its cash on hand mirrors its revenue stream. With a current cash reserve of $26.14 billion, the company had a 35.7% growth compared to the last year of the same quarter.
Cisco’s report shows how it surpassed the second quarter of 2023 expectations. As such, it increased its predictions for the entire year. However, the beginning of 2024 shows a dip from around $26 billion to $19 billion after one quarter.
The company’s cash reserves also increased with the sudden increase in revenue. While Cisco doesn’t show how it spends its cash on hand, it boasts a better image for investors.
| 📈 Cisco keeps spending on acquisitions to grow.Cisco doesn’t hold back on spending, and it is showing growth. For instance, in March 2017, it bought AppDynamics for $3.7 billion to expand the software business. The company pushed it through amidst another $3.34 billion for other acquisitions. |
Intel Cash On Hand: Acquiring Companies Over Paying Liabilities
Intel is one of the largest semiconductor chip manufacturers in terms of revenue. However, the company’s peak declined for almost a decade (2007-2016).
Although Intel still has a steady revenue stream, the past few years haven’t been smooth for Intel. In 2022, the company’s revenue experienced a 21% to 36% decline over the past year. Unfortunately, the same thing mirrors its cash on hand.
Source: MacroTrends
The decline in Intel’s revenue also led to lower cash on hand. Intel had $38.69 Billion cash on hand in the first quarter of 2022. After only two quarters, the company’s cash on hand went down to $22.55 Billion.
The decline was due to the less 15% year-over-year growth in revenue. It continued in 2023 after its most considerable quarterly loss in the first quarter. Since then, the highest cash reserves amount to over $29 billion in the 2nd quarter of this year.
Intel’s future now depends on its manufacturing operations. The company would need to exert effort to get such back on track.
| 📈 Intel cares more about acquisitions to improve business.At the beginning of 2023, Intel already acquired seven multi-billion dollar companies. Despite having less than $1 Billion net income, Intel still managed to let over $24 Billion cash on hand sit idle. The company’s liabilities are also way higher than its revenues. |
IBM Cash On Hand: Investing in Hybrid Platforms and AI
Since 1911, IBM has become the most significant industrial research organization. It specializes in computer hardware, software, and middleware. It also provides hosting and consulting services, paving the way to a steady revenue.
While IBM offers several things, its primary source of revenue is the software segment. It’s also the key for the company to acquire massive cash reserves.
Source: MacroTrends
The graph shows a staggering increase and decrease in IBM’s cash on hand in 2019. The company started the first quarter of that year with $18.14 Billion.
The cash reserve increased to $46.4 Billion in the next quarter, which is a 289% increase year over year. Another quarter passed, and the company had only 10.9 billion. Currently, IBM has around $16 billion cash on hand for the 2nd quarter of this year, which is the same as last year.
The sudden increase came from its operating activities. However, it also went down again in the remaining months of that year. Another reason is the impact of currency and divestitures.
| 📈 IBM plans to keep investing despite its massive liabilities.IBM’s finances show over $100 billion in total liabilities with only over $60 billion in revenue. While having only around $2 Billion net income, the company still had idle cash of over $16 billion. Despite the liabilities, it still plans to invest in an open hybrid cloud platform and AI. |
NVIDIA Cash On Hand: Stabilizing Company Finances
Since its founding in 1993, NVIDIA has grown its dominance in supplying AI hardware and software. It’s also known for manufacturing professional GPUs that are popular for workstations.
Through selling its GPUs, NVIDIA enjoyed a steady revenue stream. As a result, it now has around $3.043 Trillion market cap. This value makes NVIDIA the 3rd most valuable company in such terms.
The revenue of NVIDIA also helped it save massive cash reserves. As a tech company, NVIDIA’s cash reserves support many expenditures.
Source: MacroTrends
The past two years have been the peak of NVIDIA’s cash reserves, with the highest at $21.2 Billion. It went down due to the continuous decline in its revenue growth in 2023, averaging a negative 5.95% to 37.31%.
Despite a seemingly rough year, NVIDIA maintained its outstanding performance in the market. Over the past years, it surged over 500%.
| 📈 NVIDIA’s low cash reserves mean stability for its workers.NVIDIA’s finances are excellent, with a revenue of over $32 billion and lower liabilities of only around $22 billion. Despite having over $10 billion net income, the company only sits on $16 billion in cash reserves. By focusing on its finances, the company didn’t have any layoffs. It even offers WFH benefits and flexible schedules for its workers. |
Main Factors that Allow Tech Companies to Have a Lot of Cash
With such massive cash reserves, knowing why the tech industry can do it without a problem is interesting. Upon looking at the actions of these tech giants, here are some helpful insights on why they can do so:
1. Having a Strong Business Model
Looking at these tech giants, you’ll see their business models’ strengths. The tech industry investors see continuous growth in cash margins over time.
Each company does well because they remain on top for so long. With the staggering growth, attempting to topple them gets more challenging.
Apple, for instance, continues to enjoy steady revenue growth. The nature of tech is to improve, and as long as these companies can keep up with innovations, they’ll thrive.
| 📝 Note With so much cash reserves, tech companies can fund research and development projects. Thus, they can continue to improve their products and services, leading to higher returns. |
These tech giants’ steady growth and continuous dominance lead to high revenue. As a result, they can save more cash reserves for future expenditures.
With such a robust business model, no industry can get more cash than tech.
2. Receiving Huge Cash Flow
The cash flow of tech companies is so high that they save cash while covering expenses and further investments.
Tech companies also have high expenditures due to the infrastructure they need to operate. However, it’s still lower than other industry types.
With cheaper infrastructure and higher profits, these tech companies can easily stash money. It’s visible with all these tech companies above. Each company enjoys higher cash on hand whenever its revenue goes up.
4 Common Reasons Why Tech Companies Hoard Cash
The total cash on hand of the tech companies above amounts to almost $500 Billion. This amount only includes the top companies with cash on hand in the United States. Based on the actions of the tech giants, here are some probable reasons why they hoard cash:
1. Offering Lower Returns to Investors
Another reason tech companies can stash up large cash reserves is because they offer less returns than other industries. Here’s a comparison table showing the annual dividend rates of top companies in different industries:
| Company | Industry | Annual Dividend |
| Exelon Corp | Utilities | 4.01% |
| CVS Health Corp | Health | 4.61% |
| JPMorgan Chase & Co | Finance | 2.12% |
| The Procter & Gamble Company | Manufacturing | 2.37% |
| Microsoft | Tech | 0.72% |
| Apple | Tech | 0.45% |
This comparison shows that top tech companies offer investors less than 1% as an annual dividend. Meanwhile, leading companies in other industries provide at least 2%.
Wrapping it up, tech companies gain more revenue while sharing less dividends. As such, they gain many investments and can keep massive cash reserves because they don’t cut profits as dividends.
2. Reducing Tax Burdens
Another reason why most tech companies hoard cash is to reduce fees for paying taxes. Since most tech companies provide services abroad, they stash cash in other countries. As a result, they can avoid paying US tax rates, which are usually higher.
3. Merging and Acquiring Companies
With cash, tech companies can buy or overwhelm smaller companies to merge with them. For instance, Meta platforms dominated the social platforms by owning most of them: Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp, which the company runs. As a result, this tech company overwhelms most competition and dominates ad sales in the sector.
4. Reducing Pressure from Shareholders
Tech companies keep them as cash instead of adding enormous positive cash flow as shares, which is possible due to their lower dividends. With such a setup, it’s hard for them to return too much cash flow to investors and shareholders. Thus, they have a massive stash of cash and liquid assets.
By following this setup, tech companies can hold the deciding power on almost every matter. They won’t feel pressured by other shareholders, making governance easy.
| ⌛️ In a Nutshell Tech companies stash massive cash because they can and because it offers many perks. They take advantage of the positive cash flow, and they get better control of things. While it’s for the good of the company, it goes otherwise for the rest. |
Impacts of Tech Companies Hoarding Massive Amounts of Cash
While stashing massive cash benefits tech companies, it doesn’t do the same for the rest. Here are some of the negative impacts brought by the cash hoarding of tech companies:
Preventing Growth of Startups and Other Companies
By hoarding too much cash, the tech giants have the upper hand in the market. They dominate the sector and can overwhelm other companies and even startups.
One example of how it works is the tech giant’s killer acquisitions and kill zones activities. Killer acquisitions refer to large companies’ actions in buying startups. As a result, they stop the developments and innovations that threaten their dominance.
Other tech giants create kill zones, creating market areas to exert dominance. This action goes to the extent that other companies won’t attract investors.
| ✍️ Example Meta now operates Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp. As a result, they get the majority of ad space and earn more revenue from it. |
Significant Decline in Innovation and Development
The killer acquisitions and kill zones also lead to declining development and innovation. Some tech companies use these ideas for further development. Meanwhile, some of them only act to prevent their competition. As a result, technology fails to reach its full potential despite the opportunities and resources. In some cases, investors find other companies with potential unattractive due to the dominance of the tech giants.
Laying off of Workers
This year, news from different tech giants also arose as they laid off tens of thousands of employees. Tech companies worldwide laid off 173,880 employees in the first quarter of 2023 alone.
While they have the right to lay off workers, their massive cash only proves one point. Tech giants prefer to choose the growth of the company over its workers. Here’s a LinkedIn post by Eddy Roach regarding the matter:
Despite having plenty of cash on hand, these companies stopped employing their workers. What’s worse is that the reason behind these layoffs is economic reasons.
Here’s a list of the big tech companies that laid off thousands of workers. They are also among the top public companies with the most cash.
| Company | Laid-Off Workers | Announced Date | Cash on Hand During that Time |
| Alphabet | 12,000 | January 2023 | $113.76 Billion |
| Amazon | 18,000 | November 2022 | $70.02 Billion |
| Meta | 21,000 | November 2022 | $41.77 Billion |
| Microsoft | 10,000 | January 2023 | $99.5 Billion |
Conclusion
These tech companies with the most cash on hand stock liquid assets because they can, and doing so gives them plenty of benefits. Such an action isn’t illegal; they can do so at their own risk. However, it’s affecting other companies, the investors, and the rest of the industries.
The dominance of these tech giants continues to become noticeable. It’s something to remember whether you’re an investor, a startup, or a company. It’s also for workers to see which companies would appreciate their services and keep them on for the company’s benefit.
FAQs on Tech Companies with Cash on Hand
What tech companies have the most cash on hand?
The top tech companies with the most cash on hand are Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, Apple, and Meta. These tech giants use such to maintain stability and make strategic decisions amidst economic volatility.
Why does Apple keep so much cash?
Apple keeps so much cash because it gives an extra sense of security. With the cash reserves, it can face economic decline or sudden market changes. Thus, Apple can take more risks and make more strategic business decisions.
Why are US companies hoarding so much cash?
Hoarding cash helps companies face issues like economic decline and other sudden changes. Despite any drastic change, most US companies use these assets to secure their current status.
Where do huge companies keep their money?
Huge companies usually store their cash reserves in a bank account. In some cases, they hold it within a similar financial institution. These assets are liquid, meaning the companies can turn them into cash within days.
By Harsha Kiran
Harsha Kiran is the founder and innovator of Techjury.net. He started it as a personal passion project in 2019 to share expertise in internet marketing and experiences with gadgets and it soon turned into a full-scale tech blog with specialization in security, privacy, web dev, and cloud computing.