Publicly Traded Companies Show Mixed Fortunes. Getty image.
NEW ORLEANS – According to the Biz New Orleans Data Hub which tracks Louisiana SEC Public Companies, the state’s publicly traded companies posted mixed results in 2024, with utilities generating the largest profits, advertising and distribution firms showing strength despite softer margins, and banks delivering a mixed picture. Technology companies, meanwhile, continued to struggle to
NEW ORLEANS – According to the Biz New Orleans Data Hub which tracks Louisiana SEC Public Companies, the state's publicly traded companies posted mixed results in 2024, with utilities generating the largest profits, advertising and distribution firms showing strength despite softer margins, and banks delivering a mixed picture. Technology companies, meanwhile, continued to struggle to turn operating cash into net income. Healthcare providers and industrial services firms added steady earnings, boosting shareholder profit.
Utilities Profit the Most
Entergy (ETR) remained Louisiana’s most profitable publicly traded company, reporting $1.83 billion in net income on $11.88 billion in revenue. Though earnings slipped from $2.51 billion in 2023, Entergy generated $4.49 billion in operating cash flow, underscoring its scale and stability.
As the only Fortune 500 company headquartered in New Orleans, Entergy underpins the city’s economy not just through its profits but through thousands of local jobs, millions in tax contributions, contracts with Louisiana businesses, and infrastructure investments that help attract new employers.
Entergy functions as a regulated monopoly utility, holding exclusive service territories in Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Texas.
Meta’s decision to locate a massive data center in Richland Parish and Entergy’s plan to build three new gas-fired turbines to supply it will impact Entergy’s profitability. Any new infrastructure the utility builds is added to its “rate base,” the pool of assets on which regulators allow it to earn a fair return, typically in the 9–11% range.
In practice, this means Entergy recovers the cost of construction through customer bills while also earning a profit on top. For Meta, the deal ensures decades of stable power for a hyperscale facility. For ratepayers, the arrangement raises concerns that the costs of powering a global tech giant could flow into local bills.
Smaller peer Cleco Corporate Holdings (Pineville) also contributed to the state’s utility strength, reporting $139 million in net income on $1.15 billion in revenue. Cleco Power serves about 24 parishes in central and southwest Louisiana.
Profits Dip But Lamar Advertising Holds Its Ground
Lamar Advertising (Baton Rouge), the state’s only publicly traded advertising company and one of the nation’s largest outdoor media firms, reported $531 million in net income on $2.21 billion in revenue. Profits dipped from $673 million in 2023, reflecting broader pressures on ad spending, but the company remained one of Louisiana’s most profitable players.
Consumer Distribution - Pool Corp
Pool Corp. (Covington), Louisiana’s only publicly traded distributor in the consumer sector, earned $434 million on $5.31 billion in revenue, down from $523 million the year before. The results reflect a slowdown in housing and leisure spending after several years of strong growth.
Healthcare Rebound Led by Amedisys
Louisiana’s small group of publicly traded healthcare and insurance firms showed resilience in 2024:
Amedisys (Baton Rouge), a major home health and hospice provider, swung from a small 2023 loss to a $43 million profit on $2.35 billion in revenue.
Amerisafe (Deridder), a workers’ compensation insurer, posted $55 million in net income.
Viemed Healthcare (Lafayette) reported $11 million in profit on rising demand for respiratory care.
Consumer Goods Company Holds Steady
Crown Crafts (Gonzales), Louisiana’s only publicly traded consumer goods company, recorded $5 million in net income on $88 million in revenue, showing modest but stable profitability.
Industrial Services Highlighted by H&E
H&E Equipment Services (Baton Rouge), the state’s sole publicly traded industrial services firm, reported $123 million in profit on $1.52 billion in revenue.
Though down from $169 million in 2023, the company’s nearly $500 million in operating cash flow highlights the resilience of its heavy equipment rental business.
2 Tech Firms Struggle Despite Cash
The state’s technology presence is limited to two companies, and both continued to report losses in 2024:
Lumen Technologies (Monroe), with $13.11 billion in revenue, recorded a $55 million net loss, though it generated $4.33 billion in operating cash flow.
Globalstar (Covington) also reported a $63 million loss on $250 million in revenue, even while producing $439 million in operating cash.
The results highlight a paradox: Louisiana’s few tech firms generate steady service revenues and cash but remain weighed down by financing and investment costs.
Banks Make Up Largest Group, But Fragmented
Louisiana’s largest cluster of publicly traded companies is its banking sector, though even here the total number is just a dozen institutions:
Origin Bancorp (Ruston, $76 million) and Business First Bancshares (Baton Rouge, $65 million) led profitability among midsized players. Smaller banks such as Home Bancorp (Lafayette, $36 million), Red River Bancshares (Alexandria, $34 million), and Investar Holding (Baton Rouge, $20 million) also stayed in the black.
At the lower end, several small institutions posted losses:
Fifth District Bancorp (New Orleans, –$1.1 million)
Magnolia Bancorp (Metairie, –$100,000), and
Catalyst Bancorp (Opelousas, –$3.1 million).
Financing volatility remained a theme, with swings at Business First and First Guaranty Bancshares reflecting regional banking pressures. While the banking group is the state’s largest cluster of public companies, their combined profits are still dwarfed by a single year of Entergy’s earnings.
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