Looking up the ticker with the regulator···
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Looking up the ticker with the regulator···
0s · usually 20–30 seconds for a cold read
Caterpillar Inc.
Rule-based classification of fundamentals against the sector. Not a price forecast and not investment advice.
Signals scattered
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3 of 5 met · composite in line with peers
Business quality, valuation against the sector, and position in the 52-week range — whether they line up or not.
Stable quality
Profitability
3/4
Debt & liquidity
3/3
Efficiency
0/2
EPS growth tells the clearest story of strain here: at -14.7%, it runs -353% below the sector median -3.2%, even as ROE holds at 43.5% — +29% above the sector median 33.8% — showing that capital efficiency has held up while near-term earnings have slipped. The balance sheet is a relative strength: the current ratio of 1.44 sits +20% above the sector median 1.20, and Debt/EBITDA of 2.3× compares well against a sector median of 2.3×. The F-Score of 6/9 reflects that mixed picture — profitability and leverage both score well, but efficiency flags. Where the read gets complicated is price: P/B of 18.4× runs +129% above the sector median 8.0×, a premium that sits uneasily against falling EPS. Consensus and the realized three-year CAGR are broadly aligned, and the beat-rate track record over the last eight quarters is strong — the market's forward models are not obviously detached from history here.
| Ticker | Name | F-Score | ROE | Revenue YoY | Op. margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BA | Boeing | 6/9 | 289% | +34% |
Quarter-by-quarter classification · a retrospective read by the current logic · not a price forecast
Rule-based classification of fundamentals against the sector. Not a price forecast and not investment advice. The method did not see these quarters in real time; this is the current logic applied to past reports.
The market prices in earnings growth; analyst sentiment is steady; has mostly beaten consensus.
Price against next year's expected earnings. The forward P/E already carries analyst optimism — read it alongside the “Versus consensus” line.
A forward P/E below the current one means the market expects earnings to grow; above it, to fall. The historical growth is realized figures from SEC filings, not a forecast.
The three-month change in the share of positive analyst ratings. This is sentiment, not an earnings-estimate revision, and not a call to act.
When CAT reports on October 27, 2026, track whether EPS growth turns positive after the current -3.25% year-over-year reading, and watch revenue direction against the prior period. On the profitability side, the F-Score flags a 3/4 — check whether the gross margin signal flips to confirm a recovery trend.
Pull CAT's most recent 10-K on SEC EDGAR and focus on management's discussion of the efficiency signals — the F-Score records 0/2 on efficiency, pointing to asset turnover and margin pressure worth understanding in their own words. Cross-reference the P/B of 8.03×, which sits 2.3× above the sector median, against the capital allocation disclosures.
From the alphabetical industrials table in section 06, pick two or three companies yourself and line up one metric — P/B, ROE, or current ratio — against CAT's figures (ROE 33.8%, current ratio 1.20, P/B 8.03×). No entry in that table is ranked; the exercise is to place CAT's valuation and returns in a sector-relative context of your own choosing.
Steps you can check yourself, based on the figures in this brief.
Piotroski F-Score: nine binary tests of financial strength from the annual report. A ✓ marks a test passed, a dot (·) a test failed.
Over 4 years: +6%+74%-11%-11%
Over 4 years: 2.541.621.802.29
Over 4 years: +17%+13%-3%+4%
The context on the right shows how each figure compares with the sector median. The trend below tracks the change over recent fiscal years.
Beat consensus in 5 of 8 recent quarters — a mixed record.
Last quarter's EPS against consensus, plus the estimated date of the next report.
| 5% |
| CAT | Caterpillar Inc. | 6/9 | 44% | +4% | 16% |
| CSX | CSX | 4/9 | 23% | -3% | 32% |
| DE | Deere | 5/9 | 21% | -12% | — |
| EMR | Emerson Electric | 7/9 | 11% | +3% | — |
| ETN | Eaton | 6/9 | 22% | +10% | — |
| GD | General Dynamics | 8/9 | 18% | +10% | 10% |
| GE | GE Aerospace | 5/9 | 46% | +18% | — |
| HON | Honeywell | 6/9 | 29% | +8% | 22% |
| ITW | Illinois Tool Works | 6/9 | 94% | +1% | 26% |
| LMT | Lockheed Martin | 6/9 | 77% | +6% | 10% |
| MMM | 3M | 5/9 | 76% | +2% | 19% |
| RTX | RTX | 7/9 | 11% | +10% | 10% |
| UNP | Union Pacific | 7/9 | 40% | +1% | 40% |
| UPS | UPS | 4/9 | 34% | -3% | 9% |
A sample of 15 companies in the sector including the target, alphabetical, unranked. Data from the latest SEC annual reports.
Rule-based classification of fundamentals against the sector. Not a price forecast and not investment advice.
A simplified retrospective read: no analyst forecast (not available historically); the source is the annual report as of the date, so neighbouring quarters can rest on the same data. Quarters with the same classification in a row are merged into one row — each row is one change in the read, not a separate quarter. One ticker is an illustration of the classification logic, not statistics. How we calculate →
The last few quarters are recent context, not a fixed rate. Consensus for near quarters is set low, so companies clear it routinely; over long horizons the forecasts run the other way, too high.
A description of what the market and analysts expect. Not a price forecast and not investment advice. Analyst forecasts run systematically optimistic over long horizons — read them with that discount.