CAT
Caterpillar Inc.
CAT has the edge over KTOS overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and lower modeled downside.
KTOS
Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc.
KTOS 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.
KTOS Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Strong | |
| Stable | |
| Weak | |
| Strong |
KTOS's revenue and balance sheet are currently strong, and its profitability is stable, but its cash flow is weak.
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 KTOS in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
KTOS PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 42x | $5.00 | -86% |
| Current | 290x | $34.75 | — |
| Fair | 291x | $34.94 | +0.5% |
| Expensive | 584x | $70.12 | +102% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
KTOS's PE is in its fair range at 290x.
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.
KTOS Forward outlook
There aren't enough analyst estimates for KTOS 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.
KTOS Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $0.12 | -7.7% |
| Q2 2026 | $0.17 | +70% |
| Q1 2026 | $0.17 | +31% |
| Q4 2025 | $0.13 | +18% |
| Q3 2025 | $0.13 | +44% |
| Q2 2025 | $0.10 | +67% |
| Q1 2025 | $0.13 | +$0.14 |
| Q4 2024 | $0.11 | +$0.18 |
KTOS 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 KTOS on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
KTOS Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $471.8M | +36% |
| Q2 2026 | $458.8M | +31% |
| Q1 2026 | $371M | +23% |
| Q4 2025 | $345.1M | +22% |
| Q3 2025 | $347.6M | +26% |
| Q2 2025 | $351.5M | +17% |
| Q1 2025 | $302.6M | +9.2% |
| Q4 2024 | $283.1M | +3.4% |
KTOS has the edge over CAT on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -1% | -3.1 points |
| Q2 2026 | -0.3% | -1.4 points |
| Q1 2026 | 1.3% | -0.9 points |
| Q4 2025 | 2.4% | +1.3 points |
| Q3 2025 | 2% | -0.3 points |
| Q2 2025 | 1.1% | -3.1 points |
| Q1 2025 | 2.2% | -0.3 points |
| Q4 2024 | 1.1% | -3.2 points |
KTOS's operating margin was −1% last quarter, down 3.1 points from the same quarter a year ago, near the bottom 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 has the edge over KTOS on cash generation, producing positive trailing cash flow while its opponent burns cash.
KTOS Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -$35.4M | +$5.9M |
| Q2 2026 | -$28.2M | +$4M |
| Q1 2026 | -$47.3M | +$4.5M |
| Q4 2025 | -$12.1M | -138% |
| Q3 2025 | -$41.3M | -$32.1M |
| Q2 2025 | -$32.2M | -$16.8M |
| Q1 2025 | -$51.8M | -$35.9M |
| Q4 2024 | $32M | -33% |
KTOS has burned cash in most quarters: −$123M over the past year, against −$93M 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 the edge over KTOS 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.
KTOS Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.7% | -1.3M shares |
| 1 year | +9.2% | +15.9M shares |
| 3 years | +46% | +59.2M shares |
| 5 years | +51% | +63.9M shares |
| Available history | +73% | +79.6M shares |
KTOS has 189M diluted shares, up 9.2% from a year ago.
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.
KTOS Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -16.9x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -17.5x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -19.0x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -7.7x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -8.7x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -9.8x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -1.3x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -2.2x | Net Cash |
KTOS has the edge over CAT on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
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).
KTOS Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 34.0 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 11.4 | Oversold |
KTOS's weekly RSI is 34 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 11 (oversold).
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 KTOS on valuation relative to its sector.
KTOS PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | KTOS | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 290x | 24x | 1,103% above |
| PE % | 49 | 58 | 9 pts below |
KTOS is trading at 290x earnings, a 1103% 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 the edge over KTOS on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
KTOS Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $40.1 | 13% below |
| 20 week MA | $47.1 | 26% below |
| 50 week MA | $65.2 | 47% below |
| 100 week MA | $57.7 | 40% below |
| 200 week MA | $37.8 | 8.2% below |
KTOS is in a downtrend: it's below all five of its weekly moving averages, and 8.2% below 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 KTOS on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
KTOS Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $17.8 | $26.4 | +49% |
| 2021 | $26.4 | $19.8 | -25% |
| 2022 | $19.8 | $9.44 | -52% |
| 2023 | $9.44 | $20.3 | +115% |
| 2024 | $20.3 | $26.5 | +31% |
| 2025 | $26.5 | $77.7 | +193% |
| 2026 YTD | $77.7 | $34.8 | -55% |
KTOS's yearly returns have swung widely, from +193% in 2025 to −52% in 2022. It's down 55% so far in 2026.