Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. (AFP Photo, File)
Data shows that among the largest and most influential companies on the Nasdaq, Nvidia stands out with an exceptional operating margin of 59.86%, outperforming technology giants Meta Platforms (44.42%) and Microsoft (43.79%). At the other end of the scale, software firm turned corporate Bitcoin holder MicroStrategy posts the lowest margin at -1668.47%.
The most efficient Nasdaq 100 companies based on operating margin:
- Nvidia – 59.86%
- Meta Platforms – 44.42%
- Microsoft – 43.79%
- Verisk – 42.64%
- Paychex – 42.02%
- Diamondback Energy – 40.83%
- Copart – 40.46%
- Applovin Corp – 37.51%
- Alphabet – 37.11%
- KLA Corporation – 36.88%
Other facts and figures from our research:
- US tech and GPU conglomerate Nvidia surpasses technology titans Meta and Microsoft in efficiency with an operating margin of 59.86%.
- Facebook parent company Meta holds the second-highest operating margin on the Nasdaq 100 at 44.42%, driven by significant investments in AI like its $15 billion bid for Scale AI.
- Verisk, a leading global data analytics firm, ranks 4th among the most efficient Nasdaq 100 companies, boasting a robust operating margin of 42.64%, just shy of Microsoft’s 43.79%.
- MicroStrategy’s extreme -1668.47% operating margin is largely due to its outsized Bitcoin holdings, placing it last among all Nasdaq 100 companies.
The Nasdaq 100 features the largest and most influential companies by market value across various sectors, including healthcare, technology, industrials, and energy. Technology firms make up the biggest portion, with over 35 companies, almost half the index. Many tech companies, especially startups and those in growth phases, invest heavily in costly infrastructure and R&D, which weighs on their operating margins. This oversaturation helps explain the sector’s low average operating margin of -5.76% in 2025. Yet, some of the market’s most efficient and profitable firms, like Nvidia, Meta, and Alphabet, boast margins of upwards of 40%.
With average operating margins of 13.41% in healthcare and 15.81% in pharmaceuticals, companies in these sectors are well represented on the Nasdaq 100, including Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (35.4%), Intuitive Surgical (32%), and AstraZeneca (16.07%). Vertex Pharmaceuticals is the only pharmaceutical company on the Nasdaq index that falls below the industry average, with a TTM operating margin of 2.25%. In Q1 2025, the company reported a non-GAAP operating margin of 31.35%, down from 42.4% in the same quarter the previous year. This decline is due to increased investment in research and development, as well as costs associated with the global launch of new therapies. For instance, in January 2025, the US FDA approved Journavx, a novel non-opioid treatment for moderate to severe acute pain developed by Vertex, the first new pain medicine of its kind approved in 25 years.
