CAT
Caterpillar Inc.
CAT has the edge over PLPC overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger fundamentals.
PLPC
Preformed Line Products Company
PLPC offers stronger modeled upside, 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.
PLPC Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Healthy | |
| Stable | |
| Strong |
PLPC's revenue, profitability and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its cash flow 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 PLPC in the historical PE scenario, which offers more potential upside but is not a forecast.
PLPC PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 9x | $108 | -63% |
| Fair | 11x | $136 | -54% |
| Forward | 21x | $294 | — |
| Expensive | 23x | $269 | -8.4% |
| Current | 25x | $294 | — |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
PLPC's PE is in its expensive range at 25x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 21x next year's earnings.
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.
PLPC Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for PLPC, 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.
PLPC Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $13.95 | +17% |
| Q3 2026 | $11.91 | +58% |
| Q2 2026 | $8.88 | +3.7% |
| Q1 2026 | $6.95 | -12% |
| Q4 2025 | $7.14 | -4.8% |
| Q3 2025 | $7.55 | +13% |
| Q2 2025 | $8.56 | +5% |
| Q1 2025 | $7.89 | -24% |
| Q4 2024 | $7.50 | -41% |
PLPC 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 PLPC on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
PLPC Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $209.5M | +18% |
| Q2 2026 | $212.7M | +25% |
| Q1 2026 | $176.3M | +19% |
| Q4 2025 | $173.1M | +3.6% |
| Q3 2025 | $178.1M | +21% |
| Q2 2025 | $169.6M | +22% |
| Q1 2025 | $148.5M | +5.4% |
| Q4 2024 | $167.1M | +15% |
PLPC has the edge over CAT on sales, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 12% | +4.5 points |
| Q2 2026 | 13% | +3 points |
| Q1 2026 | 7.8% | -1.1 points |
| Q4 2025 | 6.8% | -3.7 points |
| Q3 2025 | 7.4% | +0.3 points |
| Q2 2025 | 10% | +2 points |
| Q1 2025 | 8.8% | +0.6 points |
| Q4 2024 | 10% | +5.7 points |
PLPC's operating margin was 12% last quarter, up 4.5 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.
PLPC Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $10.1M | +22% |
| Q2 2026 | $18.3M | -1.6% |
| Q1 2026 | -$3.9M | +$1.4M |
| Q4 2025 | $11.8M | -43% |
| Q3 2025 | $8.3M | +44% |
| Q2 2025 | $18.6M | -24% |
| Q1 2025 | -$5.3M | -390% |
| Q4 2024 | $20.6M | +86% |
PLPC still generates free cash flow, though less than at its 2023 peak: $36M 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 the edge over PLPC 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.
PLPC Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +5.8% | +278K shares |
| 1 year | +2.7% | +131K shares |
| 3 years | +1.6% | +82K shares |
| 5 years | +1.9% | +97K shares |
| Available history | -0.3% | -15K shares |
PLPC has 5M diluted shares, up 2.7% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $285,000 |
| Q2 2026 | $286,000 |
| Q1 2026 | $652,000 |
| Q4 2025 | $660,000 |
| Q3 2025 | $258,000 |
| Q2 2025 | — |
| Q1 2025 | $131,000 |
| Q4 2024 | $113,000 |
PLPC spent $2M buying back its own shares over the past year, about four times what it spent 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 more cash than debt.
PLPC Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -0.5x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -0.5x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
PLPC 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).
PLPC Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 40.7 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 9.7 | Oversold |
PLPC's weekly RSI is 41 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 10 (oversold).
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 PLPC on valuation relative to its sector.
PLPC PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | PLPC | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 25x | 24x | 2.7% above |
| PE % | 85 | 58 | 27 pts above |
PLPC is trading at 25x earnings, in line with 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.
PLPC Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $346.2 | 15% below |
| 20 week MA | $374.0 | 21% below |
| 50 week MA | $324.1 | 9.4% below |
| 100 week MA | $242.6 | 21% above |
| 200 week MA | $187.8 | 56% above |
PLPC has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8-, 20- and 50-week averages, but 56% 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 finished every year since 2020 higher, and it's up 3.8% so far in 2026.
PLPC Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $60.7 | $65.7 | +8.3% |
| 2021 | $65.7 | $60.8 | -7.5% |
| 2022 | $60.8 | $81.9 | +35% |
| 2023 | $81.9 | $133.9 | +64% |
| 2024 | $133.9 | $127.0 | -5.1% |
| 2025 | $127.0 | $212.8 | +68% |
| 2026 YTD | $212.8 | $293.8 | +38% |
PLPC has the edge over CAT on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.