CAT
Caterpillar Inc.
CAT has the edge over DAL overall, supported by stronger modeled upside and stronger valuation.
DAL
Delta Air Lines, Inc.
DAL's outlook is improving despite an expensive valuation.
CAT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
CAT's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
DAL Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Healthy |
DAL's revenue, cash flow and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its profitability is stable.
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 DAL in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
DAL PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 6.5x | $32.27 | -63% |
| Fair | 8.8x | $44.24 | -49% |
| Forward | 13x | $86.55 | — |
| Current | 17x | $86.55 | — |
| Expensive | 32x | $161 | +86% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
DAL's PE is in its expensive range at 17x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 13x next year's earnings.
CAT Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Moderate | |
| Low |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for CAT, with profitability improving. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
DAL Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| Low |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for DAL, with profitability improving. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
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 has the edge over DAL on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
DAL Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $6.50 | +30% |
| Q3 2026 | $5.00 | -30% |
| Q2 2026 | $6.02 | -13% |
| Q1 2026 | $6.85 | +21% |
| Q4 2025 | $7.66 | +44% |
| Q3 2025 | $7.10 | -1.7% |
| Q2 2025 | $6.90 | -1% |
| Q1 2025 | $5.64 | -28% |
| Q4 2024 | $5.33 | -26% |
DAL's earnings per share have fallen from their peak: $5.00 over the past year, against $7.80 in early 2024.
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 DAL on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
DAL Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $20.2B | +21% |
| Q2 2026 | $19.8B | +19% |
| Q1 2026 | $15.9B | +13% |
| Q4 2025 | $16B | +2.9% |
| Q3 2025 | $16.7B | +6.4% |
| Q2 2025 | $16.6B | -0.1% |
| Q1 2025 | $14B | +2.1% |
| Q4 2024 | $15.6B | +9.4% |
DAL's revenue has grown year over year for five quarters in a row: $20.2B last quarter, up 21% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 7.2% | -2.9 points |
| Q2 2026 | 9.4% | -3.2 points |
| Q1 2026 | 3.2% | -0.9 points |
| Q4 2025 | 9.2% | -1.9 points |
| Q3 2025 | 10% | +1.2 points |
| Q2 2025 | 13% | -1 points |
| Q1 2025 | 4% | -0.4 points |
| Q4 2024 | 11% | +1.8 points |
DAL's operating margin was 7.2% last quarter, down 2.9 points from the same quarter a year ago.
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 generated $11.3B in free cash flow over the past year, up 26% from the year before.
DAL Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.7B | +149% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.6B | +146% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.2B | +6.8% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.4B | +132% |
| Q3 2025 | $687M | +$741M |
| Q2 2025 | $648M | -43% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.2B | -5% |
| Q4 2024 | $584M | +$1.6B |
DAL has the edge over CAT on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
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 the edge over DAL on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| 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.
DAL Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +0.2% | +1M shares |
| 1 year | +0.8% | +5M shares |
| 3 years | +2.3% | +15M shares |
| 5 years | +2.8% | +18M shares |
| Available history | +0.9% | +6M shares |
DAL has 659M diluted shares, up 0.8% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q4 2021 | — |
| Q3 2021 | — |
| Q2 2021 | — |
| Q1 2021 | — |
| Q4 2020 | — |
| Q3 2020 | — |
| Q2 2020 | — |
| Q1 2020 | $344M |
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 DAL on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
DAL Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 1.1x | Healthy |
| Q2 2026 | 1.0x | Healthy |
| Q1 2026 | 1.0x | Very low |
| Q4 2025 | 1.1x | Healthy |
| Q3 2025 | 1.2x | Healthy |
| Q2 2025 | 1.3x | Healthy |
| Q1 2025 | 1.3x | Healthy |
| Q4 2024 | 1.4x | Healthy |
DAL's net debt is about 1.1 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), down from 1.2 years a year ago.
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).
DAL Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 57.5 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 53.0 | Neutral |
DAL's weekly RSI is 58 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 53 (neutral).
CAT PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | CAT | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 24x | 24x | 1.1% below |
| PE % | 69 | 58 | 11 pts above |
CAT is trading at 24x earnings, in line with the Industrials sector's median of 24x.
DAL PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | DAL | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 17x | 24x | 28% below |
| PE % | 79 | 58 | 21 pts above |
DAL has the edge over CAT on valuation relative to its sector.
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.
DAL Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $82.2 | 5.3% above |
| 20 week MA | $83.9 | 3.2% above |
| 50 week MA | $76.2 | 14% above |
| 100 week MA | $65.8 | 32% above |
| 200 week MA | $54.5 | 59% above |
DAL has the edge over CAT on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
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.
DAL Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $59.1 | $39.7 | -33% |
| 2021 | $39.7 | $39.3 | -1.1% |
| 2022 | $39.3 | $33.2 | -16% |
| 2023 | $33.2 | $40.2 | +21% |
| 2024 | $40.2 | $61.3 | +52% |
| 2025 | $61.3 | $70.9 | +16% |
| 2026 YTD | $70.9 | $86.6 | +22% |
DAL has the edge over CAT on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.