CAT
Caterpillar Inc.
CAT has the edge over MMM overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and stronger modeled upside.
MMM
3M Company
MMM's outlook is improving, though it still trails on the overall score.
CAT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
CAT's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
MMM Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Healthy | |
| Healthy |
MMM's profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are currently healthy, 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 has the edge over MMM in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
MMM PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 15x | $98.78 | -47% |
| Fair | 19x | $128 | -31% |
| Forward | 19x | $186 | — |
| Expensive | 27x | $179 | -4.1% |
| Current | 28x | $186 | — |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
MMM's PE is in its expensive range at 28x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 19x next year's earnings, in its fair range.
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.
MMM Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for MMM, with profitability improving.
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 earned $25.48 per share over the past year, up 31% from the year before.
MMM Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $9.64 | +44% |
| Q3 2026 | $6.71 | +7.2% |
| Q2 2026 | $5.63 | -22% |
| Q1 2026 | $5.19 | -34% |
| Q4 2025 | $6.00 | -21% |
| Q3 2025 | $6.26 | -21% |
| Q2 2025 | $7.19 | +323% |
| Q1 2025 | $7.92 | +$20.64 |
| Q4 2024 | $7.55 | +$20.18 |
MMM 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's operating margin was 20% last quarter, up 3.1 points from the same quarter a year ago.
MMM Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $6.6B | +1% |
| Q2 2026 | $6.5B | +2.5% |
| Q1 2026 | $6B | +1.3% |
| Q4 2025 | $6.1B | +2% |
| Q3 2025 | $6.5B | +3.5% |
| Q2 2025 | $6.3B | +1.4% |
| Q1 2025 | $6B | -26% |
| Q4 2024 | $6B | -25% |
MMM's revenue fell from its 2021 peak and has held roughly level since: $6.6B last quarter, up 1% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 24% | +1.5 points |
| Q2 2026 | 15% | -2.8 points |
| Q1 2026 | 23% | +2.2 points |
| Q4 2025 | 13% | -5.1 points |
| Q3 2025 | 22% | +1.3 points |
| Q2 2025 | 18% | -2.4 points |
| Q1 2025 | 21% | +2.2 points |
| Q4 2024 | 18% | +2.5 points |
MMM 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 has the edge over MMM on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
MMM Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $230M | -85% |
| Q2 2026 | $763M | +$1.9B |
| Q1 2026 | $349M | +$664M |
| Q4 2025 | $1.3B | -13% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.5B | +$3.6B |
| Q2 2025 | -$1.2B | -255% |
| Q1 2025 | -$315M | -180% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.5B | -6.2% |
MMM still generates free cash flow, though less than at its 2020 peak: $2.7B 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 461M diluted shares, down 2.1% from a year ago, with $8.1B in buybacks over the past year.
| 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.
MMM Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | 0% | +200K shares |
| 1 year | -2.9% | -15.5M shares |
| 3 years | -5.7% | -31.7M shares |
| 5 years | -11% | -63.7M shares |
| Available history | -11% | -62.5M shares |
MMM has the edge over CAT on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $232M |
| Q2 2026 | $994M |
| Q1 2026 | $2B |
| Q4 2025 | $552M |
| Q3 2025 | $472M |
| Q2 2025 | $953M |
| Q1 2025 | $1.3B |
| Q4 2024 | $705M |
MMM spent $3.8B buying back its own shares over the past year, up 11% 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 the edge over MMM on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
MMM Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 1.7x | Healthy |
| Q2 2026 | 1.6x | Healthy |
| Q1 2026 | 1.4x | Healthy |
| Q4 2025 | 1.2x | Healthy |
| Q3 2025 | 1.3x | Healthy |
| Q2 2025 | 1.6x | Healthy |
| Q1 2025 | 1.2x | Healthy |
| Q4 2024 | 1.1x | Healthy |
MMM's net debt is about 1.6 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).
MMM Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 65.6 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 66.5 | Neutral |
MMM's weekly RSI is 66 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 66 (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 MMM on valuation relative to its sector.
MMM PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | MMM | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 28x | 24x | 16% above |
| PE % | 87 | 58 | 29 pts above |
MMM is trading at 28x earnings, a 16% 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.
MMM Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $171.9 | 8.3% above |
| 20 week MA | $171.0 | 8.9% above |
| 50 week MA | $162.5 | 15% above |
| 100 week MA | $156.0 | 19% above |
| 200 week MA | $126.5 | 47% above |
MMM 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.
MMM Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $148.2 | $145.9 | -1.5% |
| 2021 | $145.9 | $146.3 | +0.3% |
| 2022 | $146.3 | $100.5 | -31% |
| 2023 | $100.5 | $91.4 | -9% |
| 2024 | $91.4 | $130.2 | +42% |
| 2025 | $130.2 | $162.1 | +25% |
| 2026 YTD | $162.1 | $186.2 | +15% |
MMM has the edge over CAT on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.