CAT
Caterpillar Inc.
CAT has the edge over NDSN overall, supported by stronger modeled upside and lower modeled downside.
NDSN
Nordson Corporation
NDSN 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.
NDSN Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Healthy |
NDSN'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.
NDSN PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 25x | $327 | — |
| Cheap | 26x | $258 | -21% |
| Fair | 29x | $289 | -11% |
| Current | 33x | $327 | — |
| Expensive | 35x | $343 | +4.9% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
NDSN 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.
NDSN Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for NDSN, with profitability improving.
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.
NDSN Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $12.90 | +31% |
| Q3 2026 | $9.87 | +24% |
| Q2 2026 | $9.36 | +20% |
| Q1 2026 | $9.24 | +18% |
| Q4 2025 | $8.51 | +4.9% |
| Q3 2025 | $7.96 | -3% |
| Q2 2025 | $7.78 | -7.3% |
| Q1 2025 | $7.86 | -8.1% |
| Q4 2024 | $8.11 | -4.1% |
NDSN 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.
NDSN Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $817.7M | +10% |
| Q2 2026 | $740.8M | +8.5% |
| Q1 2026 | $669.5M | +8.8% |
| Q4 2025 | $751.8M | +1% |
| Q3 2025 | $741.5M | +12% |
| Q2 2025 | $682.9M | +5% |
| Q1 2025 | $615.4M | -2.8% |
| Q4 2024 | $744.5M | +3.5% |
NDSN's revenue has grown year over year for six quarters in a row: $818M last quarter, up 10% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 27% | +2 points |
| Q2 2026 | 27% | +1.9 points |
| Q1 2026 | 25% | +2 points |
| Q4 2025 | 29% | +4.5 points |
| Q3 2025 | 25% | +0.1 points |
| Q2 2025 | 25% | -1.2 points |
| Q1 2025 | 23% | -2.3 points |
| Q4 2024 | 24% | -1.7 points |
NDSN 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.
NDSN Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $236.8M | +4.6% |
| Q2 2026 | $170.5M | +65% |
| Q1 2026 | $122.9M | -11% |
| Q4 2025 | $193.9M | +156% |
| Q3 2025 | $226.4M | +58% |
| Q2 2025 | $103.1M | -4.7% |
| Q1 2025 | $137.7M | -16% |
| Q4 2024 | $75.8M | -50% |
NDSN has the edge over CAT on cash flow, with stronger typical year-over-year growth.
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 NDSN 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.
NDSN Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.1% | -73K shares |
| 1 year | -1.2% | -701K shares |
| 3 years | -2.6% | -1.5M shares |
| 5 years | -4.6% | -2.7M shares |
| Available history | -3.7% | -2.2M shares |
NDSN has 56M diluted shares, down 1.2% from a year ago, with $247M in buybacks over the past year.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $29.5M |
| Q2 2026 | $43.3M |
| Q1 2026 | $86M |
| Q4 2025 | $88.2M |
| Q3 2025 | $71.9M |
| Q2 2025 | $86.2M |
| Q1 2025 | $60.1M |
| Q4 2024 | $766,000 |
NDSN spent $247M buying back its own shares over the past year, up 13% 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 NDSN on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
NDSN Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 1.8x | Healthy |
| Q2 2026 | 2.1x | Moderate |
| Q1 2026 | 2.3x | Moderate |
| Q4 2025 | 2.4x | Moderate |
| Q3 2025 | 2.4x | Moderate |
| Q2 2025 | 2.6x | Moderate |
| Q1 2025 | 2.6x | Moderate |
| Q4 2024 | 2.6x | Moderate |
NDSN's net debt is about 1.8 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), down from 2.4 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).
NDSN Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 59.6 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 52.5 | Neutral |
NDSN's weekly RSI is 60 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 52 (neutral).
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 NDSN on valuation relative to its sector.
NDSN PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | NDSN | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 33x | 24x | 37% above |
| PE % | 79 | 58 | 21 pts above |
NDSN is trading at 33x earnings, a 37% 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.
NDSN Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $323.5 | 1% above |
| 20 week MA | $313.4 | 4.2% above |
| 50 week MA | $289.4 | 13% above |
| 100 week MA | $251.8 | 30% above |
| 200 week MA | $246.9 | 32% above |
NDSN 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.
NDSN Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $162.8 | $199.0 | +22% |
| 2021 | $199.0 | $253.7 | +27% |
| 2022 | $253.7 | $236.3 | -6.8% |
| 2023 | $236.3 | $264.2 | +12% |
| 2024 | $264.2 | $211.3 | -20% |
| 2025 | $211.3 | $244.0 | +15% |
| 2026 YTD | $244.0 | $326.6 | +34% |
NDSN has the edge over CAT on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.