CAT
Caterpillar Inc.
CAT has the edge over VLTO overall, supported by stronger modeled upside and stronger fundamentals.
VLTO
Veralto Corporation
VLTO 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.
VLTO Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Healthy |
VLTO's profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its revenue 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.
VLTO PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 24x | $97.89 | -17% |
| Forward | 25x | $117 | — |
| Fair | 28x | $115 | -2.4% |
| Current | 29x | $117 | — |
| Expensive | 32x | $128 | +8.6% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
VLTO 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.
VLTO Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for VLTO, 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.
VLTO Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $4.75 | +17% |
| Q3 2026 | $4.05 | +11% |
| Q2 2026 | $3.97 | +11% |
| Q1 2026 | $3.88 | +11% |
| Q4 2025 | $3.76 | +13% |
| Q3 2025 | $3.65 | +13% |
| Q2 2025 | $3.58 | +12% |
| Q1 2025 | $3.50 | +8.4% |
| Q4 2024 | $3.34 | -1.8% |
VLTO 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 VLTO on profitability, with a higher operating margin.
VLTO Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $1.5B | +7.5% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.5B | +7.5% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.4B | +6.8% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.4B | +3.8% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.4B | +6.8% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.4B | +6.4% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.3B | +6.9% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.3B | +4.4% |
VLTO's revenue has grown year over year every quarter since early 2023: $1.5B last quarter, up 7.5% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 20% | -3.5 points |
| Q2 2026 | 21% | -1.5 points |
| Q1 2026 | 24% | -0.4 points |
| Q4 2025 | 23% | -0.3 points |
| Q3 2025 | 23% | -0.2 points |
| Q2 2025 | 23% | -0.4 points |
| Q1 2025 | 24% | +0.7 points |
| Q4 2024 | 23% | +0.7 points |
VLTO's operating margin was 20% last quarter, down 3.5 points from the same quarter a year ago, near the bottom of its range since 2022.
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.
VLTO Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $304M | +18% |
| Q2 2026 | $328M | +1.5% |
| Q1 2026 | $170M | +20% |
| Q4 2025 | $291M | +11% |
| Q3 2025 | $258M | +20% |
| Q2 2025 | $323M | +35% |
| Q1 2025 | $142M | +39% |
| Q4 2024 | $263M | +9.1% |
VLTO 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 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.
VLTO Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.2% | -500K shares |
| 1 year | -2.1% | -5.3M shares |
| 3 years | -0.4% | -1M shares |
VLTO has 245M diluted shares, down 2.1% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $89M |
| Q2 2026 | $134M |
| Q1 2026 | $300M |
| Q2 2023 | — |
| Q1 2023 | — |
| Q4 2022 | $325M |
| Q3 2022 | $214M |
| Q2 2022 | — |
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 VLTO on leverage, with a lower net debt burden relative to earnings.
VLTO Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 0.8x | Very low |
| Q2 2026 | 0.9x | Very low |
| Q1 2026 | 0.9x | Very low |
| Q4 2025 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q3 2025 | 0.7x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.8x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 1.1x | Healthy |
| Q4 2024 | 1.2x | Healthy |
VLTO's net debt is less than a year of its operating earnings (EBITDA).
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).
VLTO Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 76.2 | Overbought |
| Stochastic | 88.8 | Overbought |
VLTO's weekly RSI is 76 (overbought) and its Stochastic is 89 (overbought).
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 VLTO on valuation relative to its sector.
VLTO PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | VLTO | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 29x | 24x | 21% above |
| PE % | 56 | 53 | 3 pts above |
VLTO is trading at 29x earnings, a 21% 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 |
VLTO has stronger trend alignment. CAT is above 2 of 5 weekly averages versus VLTO above 4 of 4.
VLTO Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $105.0 | 12% above |
| 20 week MA | $99.2 | 18% above |
| 50 week MA | $95.0 | 24% above |
| 100 week MA | $97.9 | 20% above |
VLTO is in an uptrend: it's above all four of its weekly moving averages, and 20% above its 100-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.
VLTO Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | $84.6 | $82.3 | -2.7% |
| 2024 | $82.3 | $103.1 | +25% |
| 2025 | $103.1 | $101.8 | -1.3% |
| 2026 YTD | $101.8 | $117.5 | +15% |
VLTO has the edge over CAT on returns for 2026, with the stronger performance.