TJX rises, Staples falls on Fortune 500 list

Grant Welker A TJX flag flies next to the American and state flags outside the company's Framingham headquarters.

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By Grant Welker

TJX and Boston Scientific both moved up and Staples fell on the new Fortune 500 list released Wednesday.

TJX, which has its headquarters in Framingham and Marlborough, rose from 89th last year to 87th this year, its highest slot during the 23 years it has made the list. Revenue rose to $33 billion, and profit hit $2.3 billion.

The Fortune 500 list is based on company revenue and has been topped by Walmart for most of the last 15 years.

"In a bleak environment for retail, the parent company of Marshalls, T.J. Maxx, and HomeGoods continues to dominate the landscape," Fortune said. "TJX sells an ever-changing assortment of branded goods at discounted prices — a formula that’s become increasingly appealing to value-oriented shoppers and has led to some copycat attempts from the likes of Macy’s and Nordstrom."

TJX also made Fortune's list of most admired companies and landed at No. 338 on its Global 500 list of the world's largest companies.

Staples, the Framingham office chain, slipped to 140th this year from 132nd last year. The company lost $1.5 billion on $20 billion in revenue.

Staples, which peaked at 101st on the list in 2010, has been hurt by retail trends toward online shopping and in March it announced plans to close 70 North American stores this year. Last December, it sold its European division at a loss of $117 million, about six months after the company's planned $6-billion merger with rival Office Depot fell apart.

Marlborough medical device manufacturer Boston Scientific rose slightly from 359 to 327, thanks to revenue rising 12 percent to hit $8.4 billion. Profit was $347 million.

The company has been on the Fortune 500 list for 14 years and peaked in 2010 at 279.

Among other Massachusetts companies, General Electric in Boston was 13th, Liberty Mutual in Boston was 75th, MassMutual in Springfield was 77th, and Raytheon in Waltham was 116th. The region's top company was CVS Health of Woonsocket, R.I.