BBSI
Barrett Business Services, Inc.
BBSI's outlook is improving despite an expensive valuation.
CAT
Caterpillar Inc.
CAT has the edge over BBSI overall, supported by stronger modeled upside and stronger fundamentals.
BBSI Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Stable | |
| Under pressure | |
| Strong |
BBSI's balance sheet is currently strong, and its revenue and profitability are stable, but its cash flow is under pressure.
CAT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
CAT's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
BBSI PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 13x | $16.58 | -47% |
| Fair | 17x | $20.68 | -33% |
| Forward | 19x | $31.03 | — |
| Expensive | 22x | $27.75 | -11% |
| Current | 25x | $31.03 | — |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
BBSI's PE is in its expensive range at 25x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 19x next year's earnings, in its fair range.
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 has the edge over BBSI in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
BBSI Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Stable | |
| Limited | |
| Low |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for BBSI, with profitability holding steady. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
CAT Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Moderate | |
| Low |
CAT has the edge over BBSI on the outlook, with more favorable profitability expectations.
BBSI Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $1.62 | +29% |
| Q3 2026 | $1.25 | -40% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.35 | -33% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.53 | -22% |
| Q4 2025 | $2.08 | +5.1% |
| Q3 2025 | $2.08 | +11% |
| Q2 2025 | $2.02 | +12% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.95 | +7.7% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.98 | +7% |
BBSI has the edge over CAT on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
CAT Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $30.32 | +19% |
| 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.
BBSI Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $334.1M | +4.7% |
| Q2 2026 | $319.3M | +3.8% |
| Q1 2026 | $307M | +4.9% |
| Q4 2025 | $321.1M | +5.3% |
| Q3 2025 | $318.9M | +8.4% |
| Q2 2025 | $307.7M | +10% |
| Q1 2025 | $292.6M | +10% |
| Q4 2024 | $304.8M | +10% |
BBSI's revenue has grown year over year for 12 quarters in a row: $334M last quarter, up 4.7% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 6.4% | -1.4 points |
| Q2 2026 | 4.8% | -2.7 points |
| Q1 2026 | -2.1% | -0.7 points |
| Q4 2025 | 5.8% | -1 points |
| Q3 2025 | 7.8% | -0.2 points |
| Q2 2025 | 7.5% | +0.2 points |
| Q1 2025 | -1.4% | +0.3 points |
| Q4 2024 | 6.8% | +0.2 points |
BBSI's operating margin was 6.4% last quarter, down 1.4 points from 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 BBSI on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
BBSI Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $21.6M | -37% |
| Q2 2026 | -$61.4M | -$3.2M |
| Q1 2026 | -$27.8M | -4089% |
| Q4 2025 | $70.6M | +41% |
| Q3 2025 | $34.1M | +$38.3M |
| Q2 2025 | -$58.2M | -$2M |
| Q1 2025 | $697K | -89% |
| Q4 2024 | $50.2M | -6.2% |
BBSI still generates free cash flow, though less than at its 2025 peak: $3M over the past year.
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 BBSI on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
BBSI Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -1.2% | -289K shares |
| 1 year | -6.7% | -1.8M shares |
| 3 years | -10% | -2.8M shares |
| 5 years | -20% | -6M shares |
| Available history | -21% | -6.4M shares |
BBSI has the edge over CAT on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $9.1M |
| Q2 2026 | $15.2M |
| Q1 2026 | $20.3M |
| Q4 2025 | $17.1M |
| Q3 2025 | $7.5M |
| Q2 2025 | $8.1M |
| Q1 2025 | $9.2M |
| Q4 2024 | $7M |
BBSI spent $62M buying back its own shares over the past year, up 94% 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.
BBSI Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -0.8x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -0.5x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -1.4x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -0.7x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -0.5x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -0.8x | Net Cash |
BBSI has the edge over CAT on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
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 more cash than debt.
BBSI Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 43.7 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 20.9 | Neutral |
BBSI's weekly RSI is 44 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 21 (neutral).
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).
BBSI PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | BBSI | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 25x | 24x | 3.1% above |
| PE % | 98 | 58 | 40 pts above |
BBSI is trading at 25x earnings, in line with the Industrials sector's median of 24x.
CAT PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | CAT | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 24x | 24x | 1.3% below |
| PE % | 69 | 58 | 11 pts above |
CAT has the edge over BBSI on valuation relative to its sector.
BBSI Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $31.6 | 1.7% below |
| 20 week MA | $34.0 | 8.8% below |
| 50 week MA | $33.3 | 6.9% below |
| 100 week MA | $37.8 | 18% below |
| 200 week MA | $33.2 | 6.5% below |
BBSI is in a downtrend: it's below all five of its weekly moving averages, and 6.5% below 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 the edge over BBSI on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
BBSI Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $22.5 | $17.3 | -23% |
| 2021 | $17.3 | $17.3 | +0.1% |
| 2022 | $17.3 | $23.6 | +36% |
| 2023 | $23.6 | $29.0 | +23% |
| 2024 | $29.0 | $43.4 | +50% |
| 2025 | $43.4 | $36.2 | -16% |
| 2026 YTD | $36.2 | $31.0 | -14% |
BBSI has finished higher in four of the last six years. It's down 14% so far in 2026.
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 the edge over BBSI on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.