Top 500 private companies: Pratt’s Visy Industries at the top

Agriculture, construction and Pratt’s paper and pulp thrive in a volatile economy, the Top 500 private companies list shows.

DEAL 18 Sep 2015

Australia’s economy may have been on a volatile ride over the past year as it tracked global issues but agricultural businesses and construction boomed, as shown by IBISWorld’s Top 500 private companies list.

The 2015 list showed that substantial growth in the residential housing construction industry over the year had not only benefited that sector but had also flowed on to ancillary industries. These included wood product manufacturing, furniture and floor covering wholesaling and property management. Prepared by IBISWorld’s team of analysts, the Top 500 list ranks the top private, Australian owned companies by revenue. The list includes public unlisted companies, partnerships, associations and private companies. To compile the list, IBISWorld gathered data through primary research, company reports lodged with the Australian Securities and Investment Commission, and its own appraisals of company revenue based on historic data and industry analysis.

Anthony Pratt’s Visy Industries maintained the number one position with a 27.3 per cent increase in revenue to $5.6 billion, while CBH Group jumped two spots to take out the second spot, following a record grain harvest. 7-Eleven Stores fell one spot to number three as the fall in fuel prices outweighed the increase in volume of fuel sold over the year. A high proportion of the company’s revenue, which hit $3.8bn, comes from fuel sales.

A record number of cattle processed over the year kept Teys Australia at number six, with a revenue of $2.9bn. The drought meant farmers were unable to feed cattle, leading to the increased number of cattle processed. Teys is Australia’s second largest meat processor and exporter. Agribusinesses across the board did well in this year’s list, particularly meat processing companies that have mostly seen high levels of revenue growth. Companies operating in the grain storage industry also had a good year.

The top 10 was rounded out by Meriton Apartments, which recorded revenue of $2.5bn due to strong growth in the residential construction industry. Other industries to perform well were those operating in the automotive industries. The professional services industry also had a good year, with strong growth among the Big Four accounting firms as well as growth in the recruitment and employment services industry.