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America's 11th largest tech company (It's Apple's iPad)

January 8, 2013: 6:59 AM ET

Measured in revenue, Apple's iPad would rank No. 11. On the Fortune 500? No. 98.

iPad-mini-blackFORTUNE -- Just how lucrative has Apple's iPad become? Let's put it this way: if the tablet were spun off into a standalone business, it would be the 11th largest U.S. tech company.

According to a recent report from Bernstein Research analyst Toni Sacconaghi, the iPad line brought in $32 billion in sales last year -- accounting for just over 60% of all tablet sales -- and will grow 75% in 2013 to $46 billion. With numbers like those, Sacconaghi estimates that would make the iPad business, on its own, the 11th largest tech company.

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Even more impressive, it would make the Fortune 500, slotting in at No. 98, above long-established companies like McDonald's (MCD) (No. 107, $27 billion), Macy's (M) (No. 110, $26.4 billion), and Nike (NKE) (No. 136, $20.9 billion). Put another way, the iPad business handily makes more money than Gap (GPS) (No. 185, $14.5 billion) and Toys "R" Us (No. 194, $13.9 billion) combined. Not too shabby for a device launched just shy of three years ago.

Looking ahead, although Sacconaghi projects healthy sales growth over the next two years, he sees adoption flattening out in 2015 due to a heavily saturated market. In other words? By then, many consumers -- even your mom -- will likely be tapping, swiping, and pinching around a tablet of their own.

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About This Author
JP Mangalindan
JP Mangalindan
Writer, Fortune

With a background in consumer products and pop culture trends, JP Mangalindan has brought his ability to spot the next big things to his coverage of the tech industry for Fortune.com, writing on topics as diverse as the evolution of net neutrality and the influence of social media. A graduate of Fordham University, Mangalindan has written for GQ, Popular Science, Entertainment Weekly, and nymag.com. He lives in San Francisco.

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