AIT
Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc.
AIT offers stronger valuation, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
CAT
Caterpillar Inc.
CAT has the edge over AIT overall, supported by stronger modeled upside and stronger fundamentals.
AIT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Stable | |
| Strong |
AIT's profitability and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its revenue and cash flow are stable.
CAT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
CAT's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
AIT PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 17x | $194 | -35% |
| Fair | 23x | $258 | -14% |
| Forward | 24x | $300 | — |
| Current | 27x | $300 | — |
| Expensive | 30x | $344 | +15% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
AIT has the edge over CAT in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
CAT PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 15x | $380 | -37% |
| Fair | 18x | $461 | -24% |
| Forward | 20x | $605 | — |
| Current | 24x | $605 | — |
| Expensive | 33x | $840 | +39% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
CAT's PE is in its expensive range at 24x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 20x next year's earnings, in its fair range.
AIT Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Stable | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for AIT, with profitability holding steady.
CAT Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Moderate | |
| Low |
CAT has the edge over AIT on the outlook, with more favorable profitability expectations.
AIT Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $12.34 | +9.3% |
| Q3 2026 | $11.29 | +8.7% |
| Q2 2026 | $10.95 | +8.2% |
| Q1 2026 | $10.59 | +6.3% |
| Q4 2025 | $10.51 | +6.5% |
| Q3 2025 | $10.39 | +6% |
| Q2 2025 | $10.12 | +3% |
| Q1 2025 | $9.96 | +4.4% |
| Q4 2024 | $9.87 | +3.6% |
AIT has the edge over CAT on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
CAT Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $29.73 | +17% |
| Q3 2026 | $25.48 | +31% |
| Q2 2026 | $23.23 | +18% |
| Q1 2026 | $20.08 | -2% |
| Q4 2025 | $18.81 | -15% |
| Q3 2025 | $19.46 | -9.7% |
| Q2 2025 | $19.64 | -10% |
| Q1 2025 | $20.50 | -7.4% |
| Q4 2024 | $22.05 | +9.6% |
CAT earned $25.48 per share over the past year, up 31% from the year before.
AIT Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.3B | +7.6% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.4B | +10% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.3B | +7.3% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.2B | +8.4% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.2B | +9.2% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.2B | +5.5% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.2B | +1.8% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.1B | -0.4% |
AIT's revenue has grown year over year for seven quarters in a row: $1.3B last quarter, up 7.6% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 11% | +0.4 points |
| Q2 2026 | 12% | +0.8 points |
| Q1 2026 | 11% | -0.1 points |
| Q4 2025 | 11% | -0.7 points |
| Q3 2025 | 11% | +0.5 points |
| Q2 2025 | 11% | -1 points |
| Q1 2025 | 11% | +0.5 points |
| Q4 2024 | 11% | +0.6 points |
AIT's operating margin was 11% last quarter, about level with the same quarter a year ago.
CAT Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $20.7B | +17% |
| Q2 2026 | $20.5B | +24% |
| Q1 2026 | $17.4B | +22% |
| Q4 2025 | $19.1B | +18% |
| Q3 2025 | $17.6B | +9.5% |
| Q2 2025 | $16.6B | -0.7% |
| Q1 2025 | $14.2B | -9.8% |
| Q4 2024 | $16.2B | -5% |
CAT's revenue has grown year over year for five quarters in a row: $20.7B last quarter, up 17% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 20% | +3.1 points |
| Q2 2026 | 21% | +3.6 points |
| Q1 2026 | 18% | -0.4 points |
| Q4 2025 | 14% | -4.1 points |
| Q3 2025 | 17% | -2.2 points |
| Q2 2025 | 17% | -3.6 points |
| Q1 2025 | 18% | -4.2 points |
| Q4 2024 | 18% | -0.3 points |
CAT has the edge over AIT on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
AIT Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $73.4M | -35% |
| Q2 2026 | $159.7M | +16% |
| Q1 2026 | $95.4M | -17% |
| Q4 2025 | $93.4M | +3.8% |
| Q3 2025 | $112M | -8.3% |
| Q2 2025 | $138.2M | +24% |
| Q1 2025 | $114.9M | +50% |
| Q4 2024 | $89.9M | -6.5% |
AIT's free cash flow has been positive every quarter for seven years: $422M over the past year, down 7.3% from the year before.
CAT Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $3.7B | +19% |
| Q2 2026 | $3.8B | +47% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.1B | +97% |
| Q4 2025 | $2.7B | +0.1% |
| Q3 2025 | $3.1B | -1.5% |
| Q2 2025 | $2.6B | -4.2% |
| Q1 2025 | $579M | -63% |
| Q4 2024 | $2.7B | -22% |
CAT has the edge over AIT on cash flow, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
AIT Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -1.8% | -677K shares |
| 1 year | -2.9% | -1.1M shares |
| 3 years | -5.4% | -2.1M shares |
| 5 years | -4.9% | -1.9M shares |
| Available history | -4.8% | -1.9M shares |
AIT has the edge over CAT on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $80M |
| Q2 2026 | $80.8M |
| Q1 2026 | $93M |
| Q4 2025 | $90.2M |
| Q3 2025 | $53.2M |
| Q2 2025 | $73M |
| Q1 2025 | $49.7M |
| Q4 2024 | $20.1M |
AIT spent $344M buying back its own shares over the past year, up 76% from the year before.
CAT Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.3% | -1.6M shares |
| 1 year | -2.1% | -9.9M shares |
| 3 years | -10% | -51.7M shares |
| 5 years | -16% | -86.7M shares |
| Available history | -19% | -107M shares |
CAT has 461M diluted shares, down 2.1% from a year ago, with $8.1B in buybacks over the past year.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.2B |
| Q2 2026 | $1.5B |
| Q1 2026 | $5B |
| Q4 2025 | $340M |
| Q3 2025 | $362M |
| Q2 2025 | $828M |
| Q1 2025 | $3.7B |
| Q4 2024 | $640M |
CAT spent $8.1B buying back its own shares over the past year, up 47% from the year before.
AIT Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q2 2026 | 0.2x | Very low |
| Q1 2026 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q4 2025 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 0.4x | Very low |
| Q4 2024 | 0.5x | Very low |
AIT's net debt is less than a year of its operating earnings (EBITDA).
CAT Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -0.5x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | 2.0x | Healthy |
| Q3 2025 | -0.6x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | 1.6x | Healthy |
CAT has the edge over AIT on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
AIT Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 43.4 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 9.2 | Oversold |
AIT's weekly RSI is 43 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 9 (oversold).
CAT Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 32.7 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 6.7 | Oversold |
CAT's weekly RSI is 33 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 7 (oversold).
AIT PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | AIT | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 27x | 24x | 11% above |
| PE % | 71 | 58 | 13 pts above |
AIT is trading at 27x earnings, a 11% premium to the Industrials sector's median of 24x.
CAT PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | CAT | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 24x | 24x | 1.1% below |
| PE % | 69 | 58 | 11 pts above |
CAT has the edge over AIT on valuation relative to its sector.
AIT Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $317.1 | 5.5% below |
| 20 week MA | $329.2 | 8.9% below |
| 50 week MA | $302.8 | 1% below |
| 100 week MA | $274.5 | 9.2% above |
| 200 week MA | $225.3 | 33% above |
AIT has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8-, 20- and 50-week averages, but 33% above its 200-week average.
CAT Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $709.0 | 15% below |
| 20 week MA | $797.0 | 24% below |
| 50 week MA | $771.3 | 22% below |
| 100 week MA | $586.7 | 3.2% above |
| 200 week MA | $443.1 | 37% above |
CAT has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8-, 20- and 50-week averages, but 37% above its 200-week average.
AIT Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $66.6 | $78.1 | +17% |
| 2021 | $78.1 | $101.6 | +30% |
| 2022 | $101.6 | $126.3 | +24% |
| 2023 | $126.3 | $172.7 | +37% |
| 2024 | $172.7 | $241.6 | +40% |
| 2025 | $241.6 | $264.8 | +9.6% |
| 2026 YTD | $264.8 | $299.8 | +13% |
AIT has the edge over CAT on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
CAT Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $148.3 | $179.6 | +21% |
| 2021 | $179.6 | $206.2 | +15% |
| 2022 | $206.2 | $239.9 | +16% |
| 2023 | $239.9 | $295.7 | +23% |
| 2024 | $295.7 | $364.9 | +23% |
| 2025 | $364.9 | $583.0 | +60% |
| 2026 YTD | $583.0 | $605.3 | +3.8% |
CAT has finished every year since 2020 higher, and it's up 3.8% so far in 2026.