Tech Companies Hoarded The Most Cash Of Any Sector In 2016: Moody's

U.S. tech companies continued to hoard the most cash of any sector in 2016, according to a Moody's Investors Service report published Wednesday. Apple Inc. , Microsoft Corp. , Google , Cisco Inc. and Oracle Corp. led the pack with a combined total of $594 billion, the rating agency said in a new report. Apple alone held $246 billion, or 13.2% of the total corporate cashpile, up 12.8% from $216 billion in 2015. Overall, non-financial companies had $1.84 trillion in cash at year-end, up 9.2% from the year-earlier period. Overseas cash is about $1.3 trillion, or 70% of the total, said the report. The most cash-rich sectors are tech, health care, consumer products and energy with a combined $1.46 trillion, or 79% of the total. The tech sector had a combined $871 billion. "Offshore cash holdings will continue to grow absent tax reform," said Moody's.