The Carolinas claim a diverse array of publicly traded companies -- from Raleigh-based Martin Marietta Materials, which makes gravel and construction aggregates, to VF Corp. of Greensboro, which owns Nautica, 7 For All Mankind and other of the world's best-known clothing brands. Last year wasn't exactly a banner one for many of the businesses, which were hurt by the difficulties in housing, the related credit crunch and subsequent slowdown of the U.S. economy.

At the median, revenue grew slightly. But profit and stock price dropped.

Even so, some companies managed to stand out. Here's a snapshot of top companies from six industries represented on our list.

For information on any company, visit www.newsobserver.com/business and type the stock ticker in the "investor tools" section.

MANUFACTURING and INDUSTRIAL

Nucor

Rank: 2

Location: Charlotte

Top executive: Daniel R. DiMicco, CEO

Total employees: 19,793

Carolinas employees: 2,367

Description: Manufactures steel products such as joists and beams, using scrap metal as the primary material.

Factoid: Nucor, which traces its roots to Ransom E. Olds, founder of the Oldsmobile car company, is North America's largest recycler. In 2007, it recycled about 21 million tons of scrap steel.

HEALTH CARE and BIOTECHNOLOGY

GlaxoSmithKline

Rank: 5

Location: Research Triangle Park

Top executive: Andrew Witty, CEO

Total employees: 100,000

Carolinas employees: 6,000 (4,700 in the Triangle)

Description: Makes medicines for six primary categories: asthma, virus control, infections, mental health, diabetes and digestive problems. It also markets products including Aquafresh toothpaste and Nicorette smoking control products.

Factoid: GSK traces its origins to a pharmacy established in London in 1715. It produces nearly 4 billion packs of medicine and other products annually and evaluates about 65 million compounds each year in its search for new treatments.

RETAIL, RESTAURANTS and ENTERTAINMENT

Delhaize Group

Rank: 6

Location: Salisbury

Top executive: Pierre-Olivier Beckers, CEO

Total employees: 137,800

Carolinas employees: 37,811

Description: Owns food retailers in seven countries on three continents. In the U.S., it has more than 1,570 stores in 16 Eastern states operating under the Food Lion, Bloom, Bottom Dollar, Harveys, Hannaford Bros. and Sweetbay names.

Factoid: The company's sales growth last year was fueled in large part by growing momentum at Food Lion. The chain is upgrading stores, focusing on customer niches and expanding. Food Lion expects to add 40 to 45 stores this year.

UTILITIES

Progress Energy

Rank: 8

Location: Raleigh

Top executive: William D. Johnson, CEO

Total employees: 10,933

Carolinas employees: 6,529

Description: The only Fortune 500 company based in the Triangle, it serves more than 3.1 million electricity customers in the Carolinas and Florida.

Factoid: The company has more than 21,000 megawatts of generation capacity and serves a territory covering 34,000 square miles in the Carolinas and 20,000 square miles in Florida.

CONSUMER GOODS

Lance

Rank: 29

Location: Charlotte

Top executive: David V. Singer, CEO

Total employees: 4,700

Carolinas employees: 1,700

Description: Among the largest manufacturers of snack foods.

Factoid: It was incorporated in North Carolina in 1926. In 1938, Lance introduced Toastchee, which is made of peanut butter and cheese crackers and is among its best-known products.

TECHNOLOGY

ScanSource

Rank: 17

Location: Greenville, S.C.

Top executive: Michael Baur, CEO

Total employees: 1,032

Carolinas employees: 473

Description: An international distributor of speciality technology products, including electronic security, communications, automatic identification and point-of-sale equipment.

Factoid: Founded in 1992, the company markets more than 40,000 products from 150 hardware and software vendors primarily from its warehouses in Tennessee, Florida, Mexico and Belgium.