CAT
Caterpillar Inc.
CAT has the edge over OPXS overall, supported by stronger fundamentals and stronger modeled upside.
OPXS
Optex Systems Holdings, Inc
OPXS trails on the overall score without a compensating advantage in the available component scores.
CAT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
CAT's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
OPXS Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Under pressure | |
| Stable | |
| Under pressure | |
| Strong |
OPXS's balance sheet is currently strong, and its profitability is stable, but its revenue and cash flow are 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 OPXS in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
OPXS PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 8.3x | $4.49 | -48% |
| Fair | 15x | $8.18 | -4.7% |
| Current | 16x | $8.58 | — |
| Expensive | 20x | $10.93 | +27% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
OPXS's PE is in its fair range at 16x.
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.
OPXS Forward outlook
There aren't enough analyst estimates for OPXS 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.
OPXS Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $0.54 | -28% |
| Q1 2026 | $0.58 | -18% |
| Q4 2025 | $0.65 | +6.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $0.74 | +35% |
| Q2 2025 | $0.75 | +23% |
| Q1 2025 | $0.71 | +37% |
| Q4 2024 | $0.61 | +42% |
| Q3 2024 | $0.55 | +62% |
OPXS 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 OPXS on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
OPXS Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $9.7M | -12% |
| Q1 2026 | $9.6M | -10% |
| Q4 2025 | $9.1M | +12% |
| Q3 2025 | $11.3M | +20% |
| Q2 2025 | $11.1M | +23% |
| Q1 2025 | $10.7M | +26% |
| Q4 2024 | $8.2M | +18% |
| Q3 2024 | $9.4M | +17% |
OPXS has the edge over CAT on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 14% | -2.9 points |
| Q1 2026 | 17% | -3.6 points |
| Q4 2025 | 1.6% | -9.5 points |
| Q3 2025 | 18% | +4.5 points |
| Q2 2025 | 17% | -0.6 points |
| Q1 2025 | 21% | +4.9 points |
| Q4 2024 | 11% | +3.2 points |
| Q3 2024 | 14% | -7.3 points |
OPXS's operating margin was 14% last quarter, down 2.9 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 generated $11.3B in free cash flow over the past year, up 26% from the year before.
OPXS Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $2.1M | +53% |
| Q1 2026 | -$1.6M | -256% |
| Q4 2025 | -$548K | -122% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.5M | +179% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.4M | +$1.6M |
| Q1 2025 | $1.1M | +$2.4M |
| Q4 2024 | $2.5M | +13% |
| Q3 2024 | $545K | -50% |
OPXS 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 OPXS 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.
OPXS Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +0.1% | +9.8K shares |
| 1 year | +0.1% | +5.4K shares |
| 3 years | +3.7% | +249K shares |
| 5 years | -15% | -1.2M shares |
| Available history | -18% | -1.6M shares |
OPXS has 7M diluted shares, about the same as a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q4 2021 | $74,000 |
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.
OPXS Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | -1.1x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -0.7x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -0.9x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2024 | -0.2x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2024 | -0.1x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2024 | -0.1x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2023 | -0.6x | Net Cash |
OPXS 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).
OPXS Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 33.4 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 13.5 | Oversold |
OPXS's weekly RSI is 33 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 14 (oversold).
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.
OPXS PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | OPXS | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 16x | 24x | 34% below |
| PE % | 56 | 58 | 2 pts below |
OPXS 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 the edge over OPXS on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
OPXS Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $9.54 | 10% below |
| 20 week MA | $10.7 | 19% below |
| 50 week MA | $12.1 | 29% below |
| 100 week MA | $10.9 | 21% below |
| 200 week MA | $8.22 | 4.4% above |
OPXS has fallen below most of its moving averages, though it's still 4.4% above 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 OPXS on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
OPXS Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $2.02 | $1.73 | -14% |
| 2021 | $1.73 | $1.79 | +3.5% |
| 2022 | $1.79 | $2.91 | +63% |
| 2023 | $2.91 | $6.55 | +125% |
| 2024 | $6.55 | $7.02 | +7.2% |
| 2025 | $7.02 | $14.1 | +100% |
| 2026 YTD | $14.1 | $8.58 | -39% |
OPXS is down 39% so far in 2026, after finishing higher in five of the previous six years.