CAT
Caterpillar Inc.
CAT has the edge over SKYW overall, supported by stronger modeled upside and stronger fundamentals.
SKYW
SkyWest, Inc.
SKYW 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.
SKYW Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Stable |
SKYW's profitability and cash flow are currently healthy, and its revenue and balance sheet are 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.
SKYW PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | 7.8x | $82.50 | — |
| Current | 8x | $82.50 | — |
| Cheap | 8.7x | $89.40 | +8.4% |
| Fair | 12x | $122 | +48% |
| Expensive | 28x | $292 | +254% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
SKYW 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 |
CAT has the edge over SKYW on the outlook, with more favorable valuation and profitability expectations.
SKYW Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Stable | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for SKYW, with profitability holding steady.
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.
SKYW Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $10.56 | +2.2% |
| Q3 2026 | $10.33 | -1.4% |
| Q2 2026 | $10.06 | +2.3% |
| Q1 2026 | $10.43 | +19% |
| Q4 2025 | $10.35 | +33% |
| Q3 2025 | $10.48 | +82% |
| Q2 2025 | $9.83 | +137% |
| Q1 2025 | $8.74 | +227% |
| Q4 2024 | $7.77 | +909% |
SKYW 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 SKYW on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
SKYW Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.1B | +6.4% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.1B | +6.5% |
| Q1 2026 | $1B | +6.8% |
| Q4 2025 | $1B | +8.5% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.1B | +15% |
| Q2 2025 | $1B | +19% |
| Q1 2025 | $948.5M | +18% |
| Q4 2024 | $944.4M | +26% |
SKYW's revenue has grown year over year for 12 quarters in a row: $1.1B last quarter, up 6.4% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 16% | -0.8 points |
| Q2 2026 | 14% | -2.3 points |
| Q1 2026 | 12% | -2.5 points |
| Q4 2025 | 13% | -2.2 points |
| Q3 2025 | 17% | +2.2 points |
| Q2 2025 | 16% | +2.6 points |
| Q1 2025 | 15% | +2.3 points |
| Q4 2024 | 15% | +12 points |
SKYW's operating margin was 16% last quarter, down 0.8 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 generated $11.3B in free cash flow over the past year, up 26% from the year before.
SKYW Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $124.8M | -45% |
| Q2 2026 | $283.9M | +141% |
| Q1 2026 | $130.4M | -20% |
| Q4 2025 | $224.3M | +38% |
| Q3 2025 | $225.4M | +127% |
| Q2 2025 | $117.6M | -5.5% |
| Q1 2025 | $162.6M | +6% |
| Q4 2024 | $162.7M | -28% |
SKYW 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 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.
SKYW Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -2% | -793K shares |
| 1 year | -6.2% | -2.6M shares |
| 3 years | -8.8% | -3.8M shares |
| 5 years | -23% | -11.9M shares |
| Available history | -24% | -12M shares |
SKYW has the edge over CAT on shareholder dilution, with a more favorable share count trend.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q1 2024 | $8.8M |
| Q3 2023 | $50.5M |
| Q2 2023 | $96M |
| Q1 2023 | $100M |
| Q4 2020 | $6.2M |
| Q3 2020 | — |
| Q2 2020 | — |
| Q1 2020 | $26.2M |
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 SKYW on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
SKYW Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 2.4x | Moderate |
| Q2 2026 | 2.3x | Moderate |
| Q1 2026 | 2.4x | Moderate |
| Q4 2025 | 2.3x | Moderate |
| Q3 2025 | 2.4x | Moderate |
| Q2 2025 | 2.6x | Moderate |
| Q1 2025 | 2.6x | Moderate |
| Q4 2024 | 2.8x | Moderate |
SKYW's net debt is about 2.4 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), about the same as 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).
SKYW Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 38.4 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 6.7 | Oversold |
SKYW's weekly RSI is 38 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 7 (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.
SKYW PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | SKYW | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 8x | 24x | 67% below |
| PE % | 12 | 58 | 46 pts below |
SKYW 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 SKYW on trend strength, trading above more of its moving averages.
SKYW Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $90.5 | 8.8% below |
| 20 week MA | $97.0 | 15% below |
| 50 week MA | $95.9 | 14% below |
| 100 week MA | $99.1 | 17% below |
| 200 week MA | $77.8 | 6% above |
SKYW has fallen below most of its moving averages, though it's still 6% 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 SKYW on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.
SKYW Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $64.9 | $40.4 | -38% |
| 2021 | $40.4 | $41.3 | +2.1% |
| 2022 | $41.3 | $15.6 | -62% |
| 2023 | $15.6 | $52.2 | +235% |
| 2024 | $52.2 | $101.3 | +94% |
| 2025 | $101.3 | $102.8 | +1.5% |
| 2026 YTD | $102.8 | $82.5 | -20% |
SKYW's yearly returns have swung widely, from +235% in 2023 to −62% in 2022. It's down 20% so far in 2026.