CAT vs FSS vs HUBB Stock Comparison

Caterpillar, Federal Signal and Hubbell Prices as of Oct 29, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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CAT Caterpillar Inc
$647.25 -21.7% 1M +10.5% 1Y
Market cap
$285.21B
P/E
24.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$77.77B
Div. yield
–
Heavy Equipment Industrials
4 wins
FSS Federal Signal Corp /De/
$115.22 +0.8% 1M -11.2% 1Y
Market cap
$7.26B
P/E
24.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.55B
Div. yield
0.00%
Heavy Equipment Industrials
4 wins
HUBB Hubbell Inc
$437.90 -4.7% 1M -7.3% 1Y
Market cap
$22.78B
P/E
25.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$6.59B
Div. yield
–
Electrical Equipment Industrials
3 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Caterpillar leads on 4 of the 12 questions below (Caterpillar 4, Federal Signal 4, Hubbell 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCATFSSHUBBLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $285.21B $7.26B $22.78B CAT
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 24.1x 24.4x 25.1x CAT
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 25.1x 23.4x 21.8x HUBB
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +20.3% +24.0% +16.0% FSS
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months — 11.7% 13.8% HUBB
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 16.0% 11.3% FSS
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — 0.7x 3.0x FSS
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +10.5% -11.2% -7.3% CAT
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +26.0%/yr +21.9%/yr +17.1%/yr CAT
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 40.3% 34.9% 32.0% HUBB
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 44/100 77/100 56/100 FSS

Percentile Scorecard

CATFSSHUBB

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

AxisCATFSSHUBB
Valuation 29 #144 of 203 58 #85 of 203 38 #126 of 203
Growth 74 #49 of 188 92 #16 of 188 71 #56 of 188
Profitability 77 #43 of 183 92 #16 of 183 85 #28 of 183
Financial Health 8 #199 of 216 77 #50 of 216 16 #181 of 216
Shareholder Returns 31 #105 of 152 65 #54 of 152 72 #44 of 152
Overall 44 77 56
  • CAT ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • FSS ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • HUBB ranked among 222 companies in Machinery

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodCATFSSHUBBSPY
1 month -21.7%+0.8%-4.7% +0.7%
3 months -20.0%-7.7%-7.5% +3.7%
6 months -27.3%-6.4%-13.8% +7.1%
Year to date +13.0%+6.1%-1.4% +12.8%
1 year +10.5%-11.2%-7.3% +11.9%
3 years +167.3%+98.4%+54.6% +85.2%
3 years, per year +38.8%+25.7%+15.6% +22.8%
5 years +217.3%+169.1%+119.6% +67.6%
5 years, per year +26.0%+21.9%+17.1% +10.9%
10 years +671.6%+849.1%+318.6% +262.0%
10 years, per year +22.7%+25.2%+15.4% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureCATFSSHUBBSPY
Volatility, 1Y 40.3%34.9%32.0% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 42.5%35.9%35.3% 12.6%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.881.271.19 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.26-0.32-0.23 0.94
Max drawdown, 5Y -39.2%-33.3%-33.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -39.2%-13.8%-21.5% -1.2%
52-week high $1,064.90$133.73$557.85 $779.14
52-week low $546.13$104.77$407.36 $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.

MultipleCATFSSHUBB
P/E now vs peer median 25.2xmedian 25.8x 23.7xmedian 25.8x 25.5xmedian 25.8x
P/S now vs peer median 3.8xmedian 1.9x 2.8xmedian 1.9x 3.5xmedian 1.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median —median 14.6x 14.5xmedian 14.6x 17.3xmedian 14.6x
P/FCF now vs peer median 42.3xmedian 22.2x 19.3xmedian 22.2x 24.9xmedian 22.2x
P/B now vs peer median 13.9xmedian 2.2x 4.5xmedian 2.2x 5.6xmedian 2.2x
PEG now vs peer median 1.95median 1.45 0.89median 1.45 2.53median 1.45

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 monthsCATFSSHUBB
Revenue $77.77B $2.55B $6.59B
Gross profit – $741.70M $2.33B
Operating income $14.25B $412.80M $1.33B
Net income $11.83B $296.90M $915.00M
Free cash flow – $365.10M $928.00M
R&D $2.31B – –
EPS (diluted) $25.58 $4.83 $17.12
Cash & equivalents $7.93B $73.70M $334.50M
Total debt – $420.30M $5.12B
Shares (diluted) 462.50M 61.50M 53.10M
Enterprise value $285.21B $6.99B $21.01B

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
MetricCATFSSHUBB
P/E 25.2x 23.7x 25.5x
P/FCF 42.3x 19.3x 24.9x
P/Operating cash flow 21.0x 17.5x 20.9x
P/S 3.8x 2.8x 3.5x
P/B 13.9x 4.5x 5.6x
P/Tangible book 14.1x 5.9x 23.7x
EV/EBITDA – 14.5x 17.3x
EV/EBIT – 17.9x 20.9x
EV/Revenue 3.8x 2.9x 4.2x
EV/FCF – 20.2x 30.1x
EV/Operating cash flow 21.0x 18.3x 25.2x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 1.95 0.89 2.53

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCATFSSHUBB
Revenue growth (1Y) 20.3% 24.0% 16.0%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 5.3% 15.2% 7.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – 24.8% 17.1%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – 20.2% 9.0%
Operating income growth (1Y) 24.9% 26.0% 15.2%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 7.4% 25.7% 10.6%
Net income growth (1Y) 27.6% 25.9% 5.6%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 9.1% 26.8% 9.4%
EPS growth (1Y) 29.9% 25.7% 6.1%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 12.9% 26.7% 10.1%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 22.9% 62.4% 9.0%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 6.9% 45.6% 12.5%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) – 66.2% 9.1%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) – 53.2% 14.9%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCATFSSHUBB
Gross margin – 29.1% 35.4%
EBITDA margin – 19.9% 24.5%
Operating margin – 16.2% 20.2%
Pretax margin – 15.2% 17.7%
Net margin – 11.7% 13.8%
FCF margin – 14.3% 14.1%
Operating cash flow margin 18.2% 15.8% 16.8%
Return on equity 57.9% 19.2% 22.8%
Return on assets 11.3% 12.1% 7.7%
Return on invested capital – 16.0% 11.3%
Return on capital employed – 19.2% 13.5%
Asset turnover 0.7x 1.0x 0.6x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.2x 1.4x 1.2x
Stock comp / revenue – 0.6% 0.5%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCATFSSHUBB
Debt / assets – 17.1% 43.0%
Debt / equity – 0.3x 1.2x
Net debt / EBITDA – 0.7x 3.0x
Debt / FCF – 1.2x 5.5x
Liabilities / assets 79.9% 35.7% 65.4%
Equity / assets 20.1% 64.3% 34.6%
Interest coverage – 17.9x –
Current ratio 1.4x 3.0x 1.5x
Quick ratio – 1.3x 0.8x
Cash ratio – 0.3x 0.2x
Altman Z-score – 7.56 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCATFSSHUBB
Dividend yield 1.0% 0.5% 1.3%
Net buyback yield – 0.0% 0.9%
Shareholder yield 1.0% 0.5% 2.2%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 12.1% –
Payout ratio (FCF) – 9.9% –
Dividend growth (1Y) – 9.4% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 15.9% –

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.

ConsensusCATFSSHUBB
Forward P/E 25.1xFY2026 23.4xFY2026 21.8xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $25.79FY2026 $4.92FY2026 $20.07FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +35.3%FY2026 +16.3%FY2026 +10.2%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +31.4% +10.0% +21.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $84.12BFY2026 $2.79BFY2026 $7.32BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +24.5%FY2026 +28.1%FY2026 +25.4%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +1.5% -5.3% +9.8%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCATFSSHUBB
Held by institutions 72.3% 100.0% 96.1%
Institutions holding 4,059 475 1,016
Change in shares held, QoQ +0.5% +3.9% -0.4%
Institutions buying 1,890 250 511
Institutions selling 1,595 152 319
Buyers to sellers 1.18 1.64 1.60

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.

CATFSSHUBB
CAT 1.00 0.50 0.59
FSS 0.50 1.00 0.42
HUBB 0.59 0.42 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CAT, FSS and HUBB?

Caterpillar (CAT) is the largest by market capitalisation: Caterpillar (CAT) $285.21B, Federal Signal (FSS) $7.26B, Hubbell (HUBB) $22.78B.

Which stock is cheaper, CAT, FSS and HUBB?

Caterpillar (CAT) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Caterpillar (CAT) 24.1x, Federal Signal (FSS) 24.4x, Hubbell (HUBB) 25.1x). On next year's consensus earnings, Hubbell (HUBB) is cheapest (Caterpillar (CAT) 25.1x, Federal Signal (FSS) 23.4x, Hubbell (HUBB) 21.8x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Federal Signal (FSS) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Caterpillar (CAT) +20.3%, Federal Signal (FSS) +24.0%, Hubbell (HUBB) +16.0%.

Which company is more profitable?

Hubbell (HUBB) has the highest net margin (Federal Signal (FSS) 11.7%, Hubbell (HUBB) 13.8%). On return on invested capital, Federal Signal (FSS) leads (Federal Signal (FSS) 16.0%, Hubbell (HUBB) 11.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Caterpillar (CAT) returned the most: Caterpillar (CAT) +10.5%, Federal Signal (FSS) -11.2%, Hubbell (HUBB) -7.3%. Over five years, Caterpillar (CAT) compounded fastest (Caterpillar (CAT) +26.0%/yr, Federal Signal (FSS) +21.9%/yr, Hubbell (HUBB) +17.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Caterpillar (CAT) 0.00%, Federal Signal (FSS) 0.00%, Hubbell (HUBB) 0.00%. Caterpillar (CAT) and Hubbell (HUBB) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Hubbell (HUBB) has been the steadiest (Caterpillar (CAT) 40.3%, Federal Signal (FSS) 34.9%, Hubbell (HUBB) 32.0%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CAT, FSS and HUBB?

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 4. 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.