CAT
Caterpillar Inc.
CAT has the edge over MGRC overall, supported by stronger modeled upside and stronger fundamentals.
MGRC
McGrath RentCorp
MGRC 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.
MGRC Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
MGRC's profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are currently strong, and its revenue 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'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.
MGRC PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 13x | $86.10 | -34% |
| Fair | 18x | $118 | -9.3% |
| Current | 20x | $130 | — |
| Forward | 20x | $130 | — |
| Expensive | 21x | $138 | +6.1% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
MGRC 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 |
CAT has the edge over MGRC on the outlook, with more favorable valuation and revenue expectations.
MGRC Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Growth | |
| Stable | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect MGRC's earnings to grow and its profitability to improve, with its revenue holding steady.
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.
MGRC Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $6.51 | +0.3% |
| Q3 2026 | $6.49 | +9.8% |
| Q2 2026 | $6.21 | -40% |
| Q1 2026 | $6.30 | -35% |
| Q4 2025 | $6.35 | -33% |
| Q3 2025 | $5.91 | -35% |
| Q2 2025 | $10.27 | +118% |
| Q1 2025 | $9.65 | +88% |
| Q4 2024 | $9.43 | +32% |
MGRC's earnings per share have fallen from their peak: $6.49 over the past year, against $10.27 in mid-2025.
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's operating margin was 20% last quarter, up 3.1 points from the same quarter a year ago.
MGRC Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $274.6M | +7.1% |
| Q2 2026 | $221.1M | -6.2% |
| Q1 2026 | $198.5M | +1.6% |
| Q4 2025 | $256.8M | +5.3% |
| Q3 2025 | $256.4M | -3.9% |
| Q2 2025 | $235.6M | +11% |
| Q1 2025 | $195.4M | +4% |
| Q4 2024 | $243.7M | +10% |
MGRC's revenue grew through 2024 and has held roughly level since: $275M last quarter, up 7.1% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 27% | +0.9 points |
| Q2 2026 | 24% | -0.2 points |
| Q1 2026 | 22% | -1.5 points |
| Q4 2025 | 29% | +3 points |
| Q3 2025 | 26% | -2 points |
| Q2 2025 | 24% | +4.5 points |
| Q1 2025 | 23% | +0.6 points |
| Q4 2024 | 26% | +0.8 points |
MGRC has the edge over CAT on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
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.
MGRC Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $53.7M | +0.5% |
| Q2 2026 | $52M | +36% |
| Q1 2026 | $34.3M | -31% |
| Q4 2025 | $69.8M | +114% |
| Q3 2025 | $53.5M | -72% |
| Q2 2025 | $38.2M | -49% |
| Q1 2025 | $49.9M | +46% |
| Q4 2024 | $32.6M | +$83.7M |
MGRC 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 MGRC 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.
MGRC Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.2% | -43K shares |
| 1 year | -0.8% | -193K shares |
| 3 years | -0.3% | -74K shares |
| 5 years | -0.2% | -56K shares |
| Available history | -1% | -246K shares |
MGRC has 24M diluted shares, down 0.8% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $6.8M |
| Q2 2026 | $15.5M |
| Q1 2026 | $11.9M |
| Q4 2020 | — |
| Q3 2020 | $116,000 |
| Q2 2020 | $5.6M |
| Q1 2020 | $7.9M |
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 MGRC on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
MGRC Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -0.0x | Very low |
| Q2 2026 | -0.0x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -0.0x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -0.0x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | -0.0x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -0.0x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | -0.0x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -0.0x | Very low |
MGRC 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).
MGRC Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 66.0 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 69.4 | Neutral |
MGRC's weekly RSI is 66 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 69 (neutral).
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.
MGRC PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | MGRC | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 20x | 24x | 17% below |
| PE % | 68 | 58 | 10 pts above |
MGRC 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.
MGRC Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $118.5 | 9.7% above |
| 20 week MA | $117.0 | 11% above |
| 50 week MA | $113.5 | 14% above |
| 100 week MA | $114.1 | 14% above |
| 200 week MA | $109.9 | 18% above |
MGRC 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.
MGRC Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $77.5 | $64.2 | -17% |
| 2021 | $64.2 | $79.6 | +24% |
| 2022 | $79.6 | $98.0 | +23% |
| 2023 | $98.0 | $119.6 | +22% |
| 2024 | $119.6 | $110.8 | -7.4% |
| 2025 | $110.8 | $108.1 | -2.5% |
| 2026 YTD | $108.1 | $130.0 | +20% |
MGRC has the edge over CAT on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.