Forbes Announces; 
The Forbes Platinum 400, an exclusive list of the best big companies in America, is a good place to look for potential stock market stars.
In six of the past seven years, our annual list--also known as America's Best Big Companies --outperformed the stock market over the following 12 months. The Platinum 400 had its best 12-month run in 2003, when it gained an average 26% versus 13% from the S&P 500 and 10% for the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
he only time the Platinum 400 disappointed, was in its inaugural year, 1999, in which the median 400 stock lost 2% and the average stock was up 11%. During that stretch, the S&P 500 gained 19% and the Dow 20%.
Platinum 400 Performance Scorecard
| Year | Price Performance Relative To Issue Date* | Actual | S&P 500** | Dow Jones** |
| 1999 | Average | 11.1% | 94 | 93 |
| Median | -1.9 | 82 | 81 | |
| 2000 | Average | 6.5 | 111 | 110 |
| Median | 3.8 | 108 | 107 | |
| 2001 | Average | 3.8 | 123 | 113 |
| Median | 0.9 | 119 | 110 | |
| 2002 | Average | -2.5 | 118 | 106 |
| Median | -1.4 | 119 | 108 | |
| 2003 | Average | 25.9 | 111 | 114 |
| Median | 19.7 | 106 | 109 | |
| 2004 | Average | 16.0 | 105 | 109 |
| Median | 13.6 | 102 | 107 | |
| 2005 | Average | 14.9 | 107 | 110 |
| Median | 8.7 | 101 | 104 |
