CAT
Caterpillar Inc.
CAT has the edge over J overall, supported by stronger modeled upside and stronger valuation.
J
Jacobs Solutions Inc.
J'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.
J Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Strong | |
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Under pressure |
J's revenue and cash flow are currently healthy, and its profitability is stable, but its balance sheet is under pressure.
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 J in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
J PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 19x | $159 | — |
| Cheap | 22x | $61.39 | -61% |
| Fair | 29x | $80.58 | -49% |
| Expensive | 41x | $116 | -27% |
| Current | 56x | $159 | — |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
J's PE is in its expensive range at 56x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 19x next year's earnings, in its cheap range.
CAT Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Moderate | |
| Low |
CAT has the edge over J on the outlook, with more favorable revenue expectations.
J Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Growth | |
| Stable | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect J's earnings to grow and its profitability to improve, with its revenue holding steady.
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 J on earnings, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
J Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $8.17 | +191% |
| Q2 2026 | $2.81 | -30% |
| Q1 2026 | $3.21 | -12% |
| Q4 2025 | $3.61 | -26% |
| Q3 2025 | $2.38 | -62% |
| Q2 2025 | $4.01 | -21% |
| Q1 2025 | $3.63 | -30% |
| Q4 2024 | $4.85 | -14% |
| Q3 2024 | $6.33 | +19% |
J's earnings per share have fallen from their peak: $2.81 over the past year, against $7.16 in late 2019.
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 has the edge over J on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| 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 J on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
J Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $4.1B | +34% |
| Q1 2026 | $3.7B | +27% |
| Q4 2025 | $3.3B | +12% |
| Q3 2025 | $3.2B | +6.6% |
| Q2 2025 | $3B | -28% |
| Q1 2025 | $2.9B | -32% |
| Q4 2024 | $2.9B | -29% |
| Q3 2024 | $3B | -31% |
J's revenue has grown year over year for four quarters in a row: $4.1B last quarter, up 34% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 7% | -0.7 points |
| Q1 2026 | -2.2% | -9.4 points |
| Q4 2025 | 7.1% | -0.1 points |
| Q3 2025 | 6.7% | +0.1 points |
| Q2 2025 | 7.8% | +1.6 points |
| Q1 2025 | 7.2% | +0.6 points |
| Q4 2024 | 7.1% | +2.2 points |
| Q3 2024 | 6.6% | +0.1 points |
J's operating margin was 7% last quarter, down 0.7 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 has the edge over J on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
J Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $431M | +59% |
| Q1 2026 | -$504.9M | -$391.2M |
| Q4 2025 | $364.9M | +276% |
| Q3 2025 | $353.5M | +123% |
| Q2 2025 | $270.5M | -39% |
| Q1 2025 | -$113.7M | -$43.1M |
| Q4 2024 | $97.1M | -76% |
| Q3 2024 | $158.2M | -12% |
J still generates free cash flow, though less than at its 2024 peak: $645M over the past year.
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 J 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.
J Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +1.4% | +1.6M shares |
| 1 year | -1.3% | -1.6M shares |
| 3 years | -6.5% | -8.2M shares |
| 5 years | -9.5% | -12.5M shares |
| Available history | -15% | -20.3M shares |
J has 119M diluted shares, down 1.3% from a year ago, with $715M in buybacks over the past year.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $142.2M |
| Q1 2026 | $219.8M |
| Q4 2025 | $252.1M |
| Q3 2025 | $100.9M |
| Q2 2025 | $100.8M |
| Q1 2025 | $350.8M |
| Q4 2024 | $201.6M |
| Q3 2024 | $56.3M |
J spent $715M buying back its own shares over the past year, about the same as 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 the edge over J on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
J Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 3.3x | Elevated |
| Q1 2026 | 4.0x | Elevated |
| Q4 2025 | 1.0x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 1.1x | Healthy |
| Q2 2025 | 1.3x | Healthy |
| Q1 2025 | 1.5x | Healthy |
| Q4 2024 | 1.2x | Healthy |
| Q3 2024 | 1.0x | Healthy |
J's net debt is about 3.3 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), up from 1.3 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).
J Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 65.3 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 79.5 | Neutral |
J's weekly RSI is 65 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 79 (neutral).
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 J on valuation relative to its sector.
J PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | J | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 56x | 24x | 135% above |
| PE % | 96 | 58 | 38 pts above |
J is trading at 56x earnings, a 135% premium to the Industrials sector's median of 24x.
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.
J Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $145.5 | 9.1% above |
| 20 week MA | $142.1 | 12% above |
| 50 week MA | $135.0 | 18% above |
| 100 week MA | $135.1 | 17% above |
| 200 week MA | $124.1 | 28% above |
J 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.
J Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $74.1 | $88.7 | +20% |
| 2021 | $88.7 | $113.6 | +28% |
| 2022 | $113.6 | $100.0 | -12% |
| 2023 | $100.0 | $107.4 | +7.4% |
| 2024 | $107.4 | $133.7 | +25% |
| 2025 | $133.7 | $135.3 | +1.2% |
| 2026 YTD | $135.3 | $158.7 | +17% |
J has the edge over CAT on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.