Five of 2015 Fortune 500 List in McLean-Tysons Area

Eight Fairfax County-based companies, in industries ranging from financial services and hospitality to defense and technology consulting, hold spots on Fortune magazine’s list of the 500 largest publicly traded companies in the United States, according to the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority (FCEDA).

The list was released Thursday by Fortune magazine.

The number of Fairfax County companies on the list is down from 10 in 2014, FCEDA points out, but Fairfax County still has more Fortune 500 headquarters than 30 states and the District of Columbia. Fairfax County is home to more than half of the 15 Fortune 500 companies in the Washington, D.C., region. The others are in Montgomery County, Md. (4), Washington, D.C. (2), and Arlington County (1).

“Fairfax County has all the important components of a dynamic business environment: excellent locational advantages, a highly skilled workforce, extraordinary educational systems at all levels, and an excellent quality of life,” said Gerald L. Gordon, Ph.D., president and CEO of the FCEDA. “These factors collectively support the attraction, growth, and success of corporate headquarters.”

Two of Fairfax County’s Fortune 500 companies, defense giants Northrop Grumman and General Dynamics, or predecessor companies, have been on the list since the first one came out in 1955, FCEDA says.

Two companies on the 2014 list, Leidos Holdings and NII Holdings, fell off the Fortune 500 rankings but remain part of the Fortune 1000 along with Fairfax County-based NVR, Exelis, SAIC, Beacon Roofing Supply and Delta Tucker Holdings (DynCorp International).

Fortune based its rankings on annual revenue in 2014. The 2015 Fortune 500 list contains eight companies with headquarters in Fairfax County:

#42 Freddie Mac (Tysons Corner)

#100 General Dynamics (Falls Church)

#124 Northrop Grumman (Falls Church)

#126 Capital One Financial (Tysons Corner)

#229 Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) (Falls Church)

#280 Hilton Worldwide Holdings (Tysons Corner)

#441 Gannett (Tysons Corner)

#475 Booz Allen Hamilton Holding (Tysons Corner)

Other facts about Fairfax County’s Fortune 500 companies, courtesy of FCEDA:

· Eight of the 19 Fortune 500 companies in Virginia have headquarters in Fairfax County, including four of the five largest Virginia companies.

· With combined 2014 revenue of $183 billion, Fairfax County Fortune 500 companies account for 45 percent of the revenue of all Fortune 500 companies based in the Washington region, and 60 percent of the revenue of all Fortune 500 companies headquartered in Virginia.

· Fairfax County companies had more than twice the revenue of all Maryland firms on the Fortune 500 list and 30 percent more revenue than the Washington, D.C., firms:

• • Fairfax County $183 billion
  • Washington, D.C. $136 billion
  • Maryland $71 billion

IMAGE courtesy of Fortune magazine