Fewer than 9 percent of U.S. consumers recently surveyed by strategic brand and marketing consultancy Prophet believe companies have strong reputations, but those in the consumer packaged goods sectors all managed to earn the highest marks.

Not surprisingly, given the current economic climate and surrounding factors, the financial services and insurance sectors were the biggest reputation losers.

In its first U.S. Reputation Study, Prophet queried 4,300 consumers on how 130 leading businesses stacked up in terms of key measures of reputation, such as quality of products and services and the quality of their delivery.

Findings led to the creation of Prophet's Reputation Management Index: Businesses scoring 75 or greater on the index qualified as reputation leaders; those scoring under 50 earned failing marks.

Among those at the top of Prophet's reputation ranking were Kellogg's at the Number 1 spot (82.1), followed by Kraft Foods (80.5) and General Mills (80.4). Entertainment giant Walt Disney (80.0) also ranked high, as did UPS (78.2).

At the opposite end, AIG brought up the bottom of the list with a 30.8 ranking, though Fannie Mae, at 33.6, didn't have much of an advantage. The automotive sector also ranked poorly, with Daimler Chrysler at 48.3 and General Motors at 49.

Insurance giant USAA ranked 34th (72.2), five points higher than competitors like MetLife, Nationwide and Geico as consumers credited it with the highest quality products and services in the industry.