CAT
Caterpillar Inc.
CAT has a slight edge over IESC overall, supported by lower modeled downside and stronger modeled upside.
IESC
IES Holdings, Inc.
IESC offers stronger valuation, but that advantage does not outweigh its weaker overall profile.
CAT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
CAT's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
IESC Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Healthy | |
| Strong |
IESC's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
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.
IESC PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 15x | $174 | -0.2% |
| Current | 15x | $174 | — |
| Fair | 20x | $228 | +31% |
| Expensive | 27x | $304 | +74% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
IESC has the edge over CAT in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
CAT Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Moderate | |
| Low |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for CAT, with profitability improving. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
IESC Forward outlook
There aren't enough analyst estimates for IESC to show an outlook.
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.
IESC Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $11.26 | +72% |
| Q1 2026 | $9.38 | +57% |
| Q4 2025 | $8.40 | +56% |
| Q3 2025 | $7.51 | +52% |
| Q2 2025 | $6.54 | +54% |
| Q1 2025 | $5.97 | +80% |
| Q4 2024 | $5.37 | +103% |
| Q3 2024 | $4.95 | +118% |
IESC has the edge over CAT on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
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 IESC on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
IESC Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $1.2B | +40% |
| Q1 2026 | $974.3M | +17% |
| Q4 2025 | $871M | +16% |
| Q3 2025 | $897.8M | +16% |
| Q2 2025 | $890.2M | +16% |
| Q1 2025 | $834M | +18% |
| Q4 2024 | $749.5M | +18% |
| Q3 2024 | $775.8M | +20% |
IESC has the edge over CAT on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 14% | +1.8 points |
| Q1 2026 | 12% | +0.4 points |
| Q4 2025 | 11% | +1.3 points |
| Q3 2025 | 12% | +1.9 points |
| Q2 2025 | 13% | +0.8 points |
| Q1 2025 | 11% | +0.1 points |
| Q4 2024 | 10% | +0.8 points |
| Q3 2024 | 9.7% | +1.5 points |
IESC's operating margin was 14% last quarter, up 1.8 points from the same quarter a year ago, near the top of its range since 2019.
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.
IESC Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $63.8M | -15% |
| Q1 2026 | $71.5M | +805% |
| Q4 2025 | -$18.9M | -178% |
| Q3 2025 | $112M | +43% |
| Q2 2025 | $74.8M | +14% |
| Q1 2025 | $7.9M | -71% |
| Q4 2024 | $24.1M | +31% |
| Q3 2024 | $78.5M | +54% |
IESC 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 IESC 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.
IESC Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +0.1% | +22.6K shares |
| 1 year | +0.5% | +187K shares |
| 3 years | -1% | -416K shares |
| 5 years | -4.2% | -1.8M shares |
| Available history | -5.2% | -2.2M shares |
IESC has 40M diluted shares, about the same as a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $136,000 |
| Q1 2026 | $1.7M |
| Q4 2025 | $17.7M |
| Q3 2025 | $51,000 |
| Q2 2025 | $5.3M |
| Q1 2025 | $20.5M |
| Q4 2024 | $15.7M |
| Q3 2024 | $19.7M |
IESC spent $20M buying back its own shares over the past year, down 68% from the year before.
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.
IESC Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 2026 | -0.0x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -0.2x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -0.2x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -0.1x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -0.2x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2024 | -0.3x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2024 | -0.1x | Net Cash |
IESC has more cash than debt.
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).
IESC Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 31.9 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 6.6 | Oversold |
IESC's weekly RSI is 32 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 7 (oversold).
CAT PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | CAT | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 24x | 24x | 1.3% below |
| PE % | 69 | 58 | 11 pts above |
CAT is trading at 24x earnings, in line with the Industrials sector's median of 24x.
IESC PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | IESC | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 15x | 24x | 36% below |
| PE % | 17 | 58 | 41 pts below |
IESC 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 the edge over IESC on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
IESC Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $245.6 | 29% below |
| 20 week MA | $299.9 | 42% below |
| 50 week MA | $279.7 | 38% below |
| 100 week MA | $211.3 | 18% below |
| 200 week MA | $132.8 | 31% above |
IESC has fallen below most of its moving averages, though it's still 31% above its 200-week average.
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 IESC on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
IESC Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $13.0 | $24.2 | +86% |
| 2021 | $24.2 | $25.5 | +5.3% |
| 2022 | $25.5 | $17.1 | -33% |
| 2023 | $17.1 | $39.6 | +132% |
| 2024 | $39.6 | $105.3 | +166% |
| 2025 | $105.3 | $201.6 | +92% |
| 2026 YTD | $201.6 | $174.2 | -14% |
IESC has finished higher in five of the last six years, four of them by more than 50%. It's down 14% so far in 2026.