BW vs CAT vs FCEL Stock Comparison

Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, Caterpillar and Fuelcell Energy Prices as of Oct 28, 2026 Peers: Industry group
CAT Caterpillar Inc
$714.23 -12.9% 1M +36.2% 1Y
Market cap
$328.33B
P/E
30.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$74.73B
Div. yield
0.88%
Heavy Equipment Industrials
7 wins
FCEL Fuelcell Energy Inc
$12.38 -23.3% 1M +62.3% 1Y
Market cap
$989.83M
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$154.14M
Div. yield
–
Fuel Cells Industrials
1 win

Head to Head

10 decided of 12

Caterpillar leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Caterpillar 7, Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises 2, Fuelcell Energy 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionBWCATFCELLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $677.78M $328.33B $989.83M CAT
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -19.5x 30.3x -4.9x –
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 32.5x 27.7x — CAT
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +42.6% +18.4% +1.1% BW
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -4.0% 14.5% -115.7% CAT
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 14.3% 15.9% -20.5% CAT
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA -2.8x 2.5x 4.6x BW
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield — 0.88% — –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +44.0% +36.2% +62.3% FCEL
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -7.8%/yr +28.5%/yr -44.7%/yr CAT
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 114.7% 40.5% 131.3% CAT
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 50/100 53/100 37/100 CAT

Percentile Scorecard

BWCATFCEL

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisBWCATFCEL
Valuation 62 #24 of 61 25 #153 of 203 37 #39 of 61
Growth 70 #18 of 58 70 #58 of 188 32 #40 of 58
Profitability 72 #16 of 55 93 #13 of 184 33 #37 of 55
Financial Health 37 #45 of 71 18 #179 of 217 81 #14 of 71
Shareholder Returns 11 #26 of 29 60 #62 of 153 4 #28 of 29
Overall 50 53 37
  • BW ranked among 71 companies in Clean Energy Equipment
  • CAT ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • FCEL ranked among 71 companies in Clean Energy Equipment

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodBWCATFCELSPY
1 month -21.0%-12.9%-23.3% +0.9%
3 months -42.6%-8.8%-31.5% +5.9%
6 months -69.2%-11.8%-9.2% +8.5%
Year to date -28.2%+24.7%+69.4% +13.3%
1 year +44.0%+36.2%+62.3% +12.4%
3 years +93.6%+199.4%-60.3% +88.1%
3 years, per year +24.7%+44.2%-26.5% +23.5%
5 years -33.4%+250.1%-94.8% +68.2%
5 years, per year -7.8%+28.5%-44.7% +11.0%
10 years -97.1%+751.5%-99.0% +263.4%
10 years, per year -29.9%+23.9%-37.1% +13.8%

Risk

MeasureBWCATFCELSPY
Volatility, 1Y 114.7%40.5%131.3% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 103.8%40.1%113.7% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 3.331.853.74 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.380.890.47 0.98
Max drawdown, 5Y -97.4%-35.5%-98.9% -25.4%
From 52-week high -79.2%-32.9%-65.6% -0.9%
52-week high $21.85$1,064.90$36.01 $779.14
52-week low $3.16$524.47$6.00 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleBWCATFCEL
P/E now vs peer median -19.5xmedian 29.4x 30.3xmedian 25.4x -4.9xmedian 29.4x
P/S now vs peer median 0.8xmedian 2.6x 4.4xmedian 1.9x 6.4xmedian 2.6x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 16.1xmedian 18.4x 23.7xmedian 14.3x -2.5xmedian 18.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median -11.7xmedian 24.4x 36.5xmedian 21.8x -9.8xmedian 24.4x
P/B now vs peer median 11.8xmedian 1.8x 16.9xmedian 2.2x 1.0xmedian 1.8x
PEG now vs peer median -0.79median 1.07 2.33median 1.41 0.05median 1.07

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsBWCATFCEL
Revenue $821.95M $74.73B $154.14M
Gross profit $160.14M $25.66B -$49.92M
Operating income $22.49M $13.09B -$179.19M
Net income -$18.35M $10.84B -$178.30M
Free cash flow -$58.17M $8.99B -$101.12M
R&D – $2.27B $28.64M
EPS (diluted) $-0.21 $23.45 $-2.53
Cash & equivalents $308.63M $6.71B $658.10M
Total debt $209.43M $45.15B $18.80M
Shares (diluted) 154.51M 462.50M 70.41M
Enterprise value $148.75M $300.03B -$623.58M

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricBWCATFCEL
P/E -19.5x 30.3x -4.9x
P/FCF -11.7x 36.5x -9.8x
P/Operating cash flow -19.5x 24.2x -10.3x
P/S 0.8x 4.4x 6.4x
P/B 11.8x 16.9x 1.0x
P/Tangible book 15.4x 17.3x 1.0x
EV/EBITDA 16.1x 23.7x -2.5x
EV/EBIT 25.7x 28.0x -2.0x
EV/Revenue 0.7x 4.9x 2.3x
EV/FCF -9.9x 40.8x -3.5x
EV/Operating cash flow -16.7x 27.0x -3.6x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -0.79 2.33 0.05

Growth

14 metrics
MetricBWCATFCEL
Revenue growth (1Y) 42.6% 18.4% 1.1%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 3.5% 4.9% 3.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 20.7% 11.7% -62.6%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -2.8% 5.6% -27.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) 879.4% 13.7% 12.6%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 17.5% 7.7% -8.0%
Net income growth (1Y) 87.7% 14.9% 11.6%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 17.3% 9.0% -13.9%
EPS growth (1Y) 87.1% 17.1% 69.5%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 24.6% 13.0% -104.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 72.4% 19.3% 0.3%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -73.7% 10.6% 13.4%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 57.3% 16.2% 18.9%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -120.7% 7.4% 17.8%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricBWCATFCEL
Gross margin 19.5% 34.3% -32.4%
EBITDA margin 4.4% 20.7% -89.9%
Operating margin 2.7% 17.5% -116.3%
Pretax margin -8.8% 18.6% -115.7%
Net margin -4.0% 14.5% -115.7%
FCF margin -7.1% 12.0% -65.6%
Operating cash flow margin -4.2% 18.2% -62.5%
Return on equity – 57.0% -20.8%
Return on assets -8.9% 10.9% -15.4%
Return on invested capital 14.3% 15.9% -20.5%
Return on capital employed 5.9% 22.1% -16.9%
Asset turnover 0.9x 0.8x 0.1x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.9x 1.3x 0.5x
Stock comp / revenue 2.0% – 6.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricBWCATFCEL
Debt / assets 21.0% 44.0% 1.4%
Debt / equity 3.7x 2.3x 0.0x
Net debt / EBITDA -2.8x 2.5x 4.6x
Debt / FCF -3.6x 5.0x -0.2x
Liabilities / assets 94.3% 81.1% 25.0%
Equity / assets 5.7% 18.9% 75.0%
Interest coverage 0.9x 6.8x -16.0x
Current ratio 1.5x 1.4x 8.7x
Quick ratio 1.1x 0.5x 7.3x
Cash ratio 0.6x 0.2x 6.8x
Altman Z-score -0.88 4.65 0.04

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricBWCATFCEL
Dividend yield – 0.9% –
Net buyback yield -56.7% 2.2% -59.4%
Shareholder yield -56.7% 3.1% -59.4%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 25.9% –
Payout ratio (FCF) – 31.3% –
Dividend growth (1Y) – 4.2% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 4.1% –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusBWCATFCEL
Forward P/E 32.5xFY2026 27.7xFY2026 –
EPS, next fiscal year $0.14FY2026 $25.79FY2026 $-2.70FY2026
EPS growth, next FY – +35.3%FY2026 –
EPS growth, the year after +221.4% +31.4% –
Revenue, next fiscal year $1.01BFY2026 $84.12BFY2026 $153.46MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +71.1%FY2026 +24.5%FY2026 -3.0%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +35.9% +1.5% +71.6%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersBWCATFCEL
Held by institutions 88.0% 72.3% 65.0%
Institutions holding 200 4,058 226
Change in shares held, QoQ +24.0% +0.5% +67.3%
Institutions buying 146 1,889 161
Institutions selling 41 1,595 38
Buyers to sellers 3.56 1.18 4.24

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

BWCATFCEL
BW 1.00 0.43 0.39
CAT 0.43 1.00 0.37
FCEL 0.39 0.37 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, BW, CAT and FCEL?

Caterpillar (CAT) is the largest by market capitalisation: Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises (BW) $677.78M, Caterpillar (CAT) $328.33B, Fuelcell Energy (FCEL) $989.83M.

Which company is growing faster?

Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises (BW) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises (BW) +42.6%, Caterpillar (CAT) +18.4%, Fuelcell Energy (FCEL) +1.1%.

Which company is more profitable?

Caterpillar (CAT) has the highest net margin (Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises (BW) -4.0%, Caterpillar (CAT) 14.5%, Fuelcell Energy (FCEL) -115.7%). On return on invested capital, Caterpillar (CAT) leads (Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises (BW) 14.3%, Caterpillar (CAT) 15.9%, Fuelcell Energy (FCEL) -20.5%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Fuelcell Energy (FCEL) returned the most: Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises (BW) +44.0%, Caterpillar (CAT) +36.2%, Fuelcell Energy (FCEL) +62.3%. Over five years, Caterpillar (CAT) compounded fastest (Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises (BW) -7.8%/yr, Caterpillar (CAT) +28.5%/yr, Fuelcell Energy (FCEL) -44.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Caterpillar (CAT) 0.88%. Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises (BW) and Fuelcell Energy (FCEL) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Caterpillar (CAT) has been the steadiest (Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises (BW) 114.7%, Caterpillar (CAT) 40.5%, Fuelcell Energy (FCEL) 131.3%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, BW, CAT and FCEL?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Caterpillar (CAT) leads on 7. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.