CAT
Caterpillar Inc.
CAT has slightly lower modeled downside risk, despite its lower overall score.
PRLB
Proto Labs, Inc.
PRLB has the edge over CAT overall, supported by stronger valuation and stronger fundamentals.
CAT Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Strong | |
| Strong |
CAT's revenue, profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are all currently healthy.
PRLB Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Healthy | |
| Stable | |
| Strong |
PRLB'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'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.
PRLB PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 29x | $68.61 | — |
| Cheap | 39x | $55.46 | -19% |
| Current | 48x | $68.61 | — |
| Fair | 52x | $74.95 | +9.2% |
| Expensive | 71x | $102 | +49% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
PRLB 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 | |
| Improving | |
| Moderate | |
| Low |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for CAT, with profitability improving. However, they disagree widely on these estimates.
PRLB Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for PRLB, 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.
PRLB Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $2.39 | +67% |
| Q3 2026 | $1.43 | +131% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.25 | +105% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.06 | +74% |
| Q4 2025 | $0.88 | +33% |
| Q3 2025 | $0.62 | -33% |
| Q2 2025 | $0.61 | -36% |
| Q1 2025 | $0.61 | -20% |
| Q4 2024 | $0.66 | 0% |
PRLB 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 PRLB on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
PRLB Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $154.3M | +14% |
| Q2 2026 | $149.3M | +11% |
| Q1 2026 | $139.3M | +10% |
| Q4 2025 | $136.5M | +12% |
| Q3 2025 | $135.4M | +7.8% |
| Q2 2025 | $135.1M | +7.5% |
| Q1 2025 | $126.2M | -1.3% |
| Q4 2024 | $121.8M | -2.6% |
PRLB's revenue has grown year over year for six quarters in a row: $154M last quarter, up 14% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 9.4% | +2.8 points |
| Q2 2026 | 7.6% | +3.9 points |
| Q1 2026 | 7.1% | +3.5 points |
| Q4 2025 | 5% | +6.2 points |
| Q3 2025 | 6.5% | -0.3 points |
| Q2 2025 | 3.7% | -1.1 points |
| Q1 2025 | 3.6% | -1.8 points |
| Q4 2024 | -1.2% | -7.9 points |
PRLB's operating margin was 9.4% last quarter, up 2.8 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 has the edge over PRLB on cash flow, with more consistent year-over-year improvement.
PRLB Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $17M | -32% |
| Q2 2026 | $9.2M | +1.3% |
| Q1 2026 | $14M | -18% |
| Q4 2025 | $8.4M | -49% |
| Q3 2025 | $25M | +7.9% |
| Q2 2025 | $9.1M | -11% |
| Q1 2025 | $17.1M | -8.7% |
| Q4 2024 | $16.5M | +$17.4M |
PRLB generated $49M in free cash flow over the past year, down 28% from the year before.
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 PRLB 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.
PRLB Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | +0.1% | +23K shares |
| 1 year | +1% | +248K shares |
| 3 years | -6.1% | -1.6M shares |
| 5 years | -12% | -3.3M shares |
| Available history | -9.7% | -2.6M shares |
PRLB has 24M diluted shares, up 1% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $5M |
| Q2 2026 | $5M |
| Q1 2026 | — |
| Q4 2025 | $6.2M |
| Q3 2025 | $12.8M |
| Q2 2025 | $3.1M |
| Q1 2025 | $20.9M |
| Q4 2024 | $14.3M |
PRLB spent $16M buying back its own shares over the past year, down 68% 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 more cash than debt.
PRLB Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -1.8x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2026 | -1.8x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -2.0x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -1.9x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | -2.0x | Net Cash |
| Q2 2025 | -1.8x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2025 | -1.6x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2024 | -1.6x | Net Cash |
PRLB 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).
PRLB Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 42.2 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 12.3 | Oversold |
PRLB's weekly RSI is 42 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 12 (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 PRLB on valuation relative to its sector.
PRLB PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | PRLB | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 48x | 24x | 100% above |
| PE % | 44 | 58 | 14 pts below |
PRLB is trading at 48x earnings, a 100% 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.
PRLB Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $82.8 | 17% below |
| 20 week MA | $81.8 | 16% below |
| 50 week MA | $70.3 | 2.4% below |
| 100 week MA | $56.4 | 22% above |
| 200 week MA | $44.5 | 54% above |
PRLB has pulled back, but its long-term trend is still up: it's below its 8-, 20- and 50-week averages, but 54% 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.
PRLB Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $101.1 | $172.6 | +71% |
| 2021 | $172.6 | $52.8 | -69% |
| 2022 | $52.8 | $24.8 | -53% |
| 2023 | $24.8 | $39.0 | +57% |
| 2024 | $39.0 | $39.6 | +1.5% |
| 2025 | $39.6 | $52.7 | +33% |
| 2026 YTD | $52.7 | $68.6 | +30% |
PRLB has the edge over CAT on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.