CAT vs GE vs ALSN Stock Comparison

Caterpillar, General Electric and Allison Transmission Holdings Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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CAT Caterpillar Inc
$686.82 -15.5% 1M +32.0% 1Y
Market cap
$318.29B
P/E
29.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$74.73B
Div. yield
0.01%
Heavy Equipment Industrials
4 wins
GE General Electric Co
$285.64 -10.7% 1M -6.8% 1Y
Market cap
$298.78B
P/E
32.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$52.58B
Div. yield
0.01%
Commercial Aerospace Industrials
3 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Allison Transmission Holdings leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Allison Transmission Holdings 5, Caterpillar 4, General Electric 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCATGEALSNLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $318.29B $298.78B $8.90B CAT
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 29.4x 32.8x 16.8x ALSN
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 26.6x 38.6x 13.9x ALSN
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +18.4% +19.6% +37.6% ALSN
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 14.5% 17.3% 12.0% GE
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 15.9% -57.8% 10.7% CAT
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.5x -0.5x 3.4x GE
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.01% 0.00% CAT
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +32.0% -6.8% +27.8% CAT
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +27.9%/yr +34.6%/yr +25.2%/yr GE
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 40.4% 33.1% 31.4% ALSN
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 50/100 45/100 57/100 ALSN

Percentile Scorecard

CATGEALSN

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

AxisCATGEALSN
Valuation 22 #159 of 203 32 #68 of 100 74 #54 of 203
Growth 68 #61 of 188 28 #70 of 97 43 #108 of 188
Profitability 91 #17 of 187 59 #40 of 96 88 #24 of 187
Financial Health 16 #186 of 222 19 #86 of 106 14 #192 of 222
Shareholder Returns 53 #72 of 153 86 #10 of 65 66 #52 of 153
Overall 50 45 57
  • CAT ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • GE ranked among 107 companies in Aerospace and Defense
  • ALSN ranked among 222 companies in Machinery

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodCATGEALSNSPY
1 month -15.5%-10.7%-7.2% -1.0%
3 months -22.7%-19.2%-13.1% +2.9%
6 months -17.3%+0.4%-21.5% +6.4%
Year to date +19.9%-7.3%+8.6% +11.4%
1 year +32.0%-6.8%+27.8% +13.1%
3 years +175.2%+215.0%+85.2% +79.4%
3 years, per year +40.2%+46.6%+22.8% +21.5%
5 years +242.3%+340.7%+207.7% +67.7%
5 years, per year +27.9%+34.6%+25.2% +10.9%
10 years +695.6%+105.7%+286.6% +255.2%
10 years, per year +23.0%+7.5%+14.5% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureCATGEALSNSPY
Volatility, 1Y 40.4%33.1%31.4% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 39.9%35.1%30.1% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.831.211.04 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.79-0.200.89 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -35.5%-45.1%-34.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -35.5%-25.0%-21.8% -2.5%
52-week high $1,064.90$381.07$136.00 $779.14
52-week low $520.50$273.25$79.27 $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.

MultipleCATGEALSN
P/E now vs peer median 29.2xmedian 25.9x 32.5xmedian 26.2x 16.7xmedian 25.9x
P/S now vs peer median 4.2xmedian 1.9x 5.6xmedian 2.9x 2.0xmedian 1.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 22.9xmedian 13.7x -13.0xmedian 14.7x 11.3xmedian 13.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 35.1xmedian 21.1x 36.9xmedian 24.9x 11.9xmedian 21.1x
P/B now vs peer median 16.3xmedian 2.3x 16.6xmedian 2.4x 4.4xmedian 2.3x
PEG now vs peer median 2.24median 1.19 -113.70median 0.92 -5.86median 1.19

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 monthsCATGEALSN
Revenue $74.73B $52.58B $4.40B
Gross profit $25.66B $18.52B $1.60B
Operating income $13.09B -$24.73B $861.00M
Net income $10.84B $9.13B $529.00M
Free cash flow $8.99B $7.99B $737.00M
R&D $2.27B $1.81B $197.00M
EPS (diluted) $23.45 $8.74 $6.30
Cash & equivalents $6.71B $8.76B $399.00M
Total debt $173.08B $79.60B $4.14B
Shares (diluted) 462.50M 1.04B 84.00M
Enterprise value $289.99B $257.30B $5.79B

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
MetricCATGEALSN
P/E 29.2x 32.5x 16.7x
P/FCF 35.1x 36.9x 11.9x
P/Operating cash flow 23.3x 31.3x 9.4x
P/S 4.2x 5.6x 2.0x
P/B 16.3x 16.6x 4.4x
P/Tangible book 16.6x 21.5x 23.6x
EV/EBITDA 22.9x -13.0x 11.3x
EV/EBIT 27.1x -12.4x 14.5x
EV/Revenue 4.7x 5.8x 2.8x
EV/FCF 39.4x 38.3x 17.0x
EV/Operating cash flow 26.1x 32.4x 13.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.24 -113.70 -5.86

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCATGEALSN
Revenue growth (1Y) 18.4% 19.6% 37.6%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 4.9% 7.2% 14.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 11.7% 11.7% 3.5%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 5.6% 10.9% 4.4%
Operating income growth (1Y) 13.7% -29.4% -13.9%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 7.7% -126.8% -0.2%
Net income growth (1Y) 14.9% 13.2% -30.6%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 9.0% -3.4% -5.4%
EPS growth (1Y) 17.1% 15.5% -29.8%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 13.0% -0.3% -2.8%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 19.3% 21.4% 14.2%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 10.6% 6.3% 7.1%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 16.2% 20.1% 12.7%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 7.4% 2.7% 6.8%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCATGEALSN
Gross margin 34.3% 35.2% 36.4%
EBITDA margin 20.7% -44.6% 25.1%
Operating margin 17.5% -47.0% 19.6%
Pretax margin 18.6% 20.3% 15.7%
Net margin 14.5% 17.3% 12.0%
FCF margin 12.0% 15.2% 16.7%
Operating cash flow margin 18.2% 17.9% 21.3%
Return on equity 57.0% 51.2% 27.3%
Return on assets 10.9% 7.2% 6.1%
Return on invested capital 15.9% -57.8% 10.7%
Return on capital employed 22.1% -29.1% 11.7%
Asset turnover 0.8x 0.4x 0.5x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.3x 1.0x 1.8x
Stock comp / revenue – – 0.7%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCATGEALSN
Debt / assets 44.0% 15.2% 47.5%
Debt / equity 2.3x 1.1x 2.1x
Net debt / EBITDA 2.5x -0.5x 3.4x
Debt / FCF 5.0x 2.4x 5.6x
Liabilities / assets 81.1% 86.0% 77.3%
Equity / assets 18.9% 14.0% 22.7%
Interest coverage 6.8x -26.7x –
Current ratio 1.4x 1.0x 1.8x
Quick ratio 0.5x 0.6x 1.0x
Cash ratio 0.2x 0.2x 0.3x
Altman Z-score 4.55 2.40 1.78

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCATGEALSN
Dividend yield 0.7% 0.6% 1.1%
Net buyback yield 2.3% 2.9% 1.4%
Shareholder yield 3.0% 3.5% 2.5%
Payout ratio (earnings) 25.9% 19.1% –
Payout ratio (FCF) 31.3% 21.8% –
Dividend growth (1Y) 4.2% 26.6% –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 4.1% 36.5% –

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.

ConsensusCATGEALSN
Forward P/E 26.6xFY2026 38.6xFY2026 13.9xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $25.79FY2026 $7.40FY2026 $7.67FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +35.3%FY2026 +16.2%FY2026 +4.6%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +31.4% +28.6% +45.5%
Revenue, next fiscal year $84.12BFY2026 $53.75BFY2026 $6.32BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +24.5%FY2026 +27.0%FY2026 +109.9%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +1.5% +11.1% +1.4%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCATGEALSN
Held by institutions 72.3% 79.4% 100.0%
Institutions holding 4,055 3,441 566
Change in shares held, QoQ +0.5% +1.5% +1.1%
Institutions buying 1,886 1,829 258
Institutions selling 1,595 1,148 229
Buyers to sellers 1.18 1.59 1.13

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.

CATGEALSN
CAT 1.00 0.44 0.52
GE 0.44 1.00 0.31
ALSN 0.52 0.31 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CAT, GE and ALSN?

Caterpillar (CAT) is the largest by market capitalisation: Caterpillar (CAT) $318.29B, General Electric (GE) $298.78B, Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) $8.90B.

Which stock is cheaper, CAT, GE and ALSN?

Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Caterpillar (CAT) 29.4x, General Electric (GE) 32.8x, Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) 16.8x). On next year's consensus earnings, Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) is cheapest (Caterpillar (CAT) 26.6x, General Electric (GE) 38.6x, Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) 13.9x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Caterpillar (CAT) +18.4%, General Electric (GE) +19.6%, Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) +37.6%.

Which company is more profitable?

General Electric (GE) has the highest net margin (Caterpillar (CAT) 14.5%, General Electric (GE) 17.3%, Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) 12.0%). On return on invested capital, Caterpillar (CAT) leads (Caterpillar (CAT) 15.9%, General Electric (GE) -57.8%, Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) 10.7%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Caterpillar (CAT) returned the most: Caterpillar (CAT) +32.0%, General Electric (GE) -6.8%, Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) +27.8%. Over five years, General Electric (GE) compounded fastest (Caterpillar (CAT) +27.9%/yr, General Electric (GE) +34.6%/yr, Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) +25.2%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Caterpillar (CAT) has the highest dividend yield: Caterpillar (CAT) 0.01%, General Electric (GE) 0.01%, Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) 0.00%. Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) has been the steadiest (Caterpillar (CAT) 40.4%, General Electric (GE) 33.1%, Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) 31.4%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CAT, GE and ALSN?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Allison Transmission Holdings (ALSN) leads on 5. 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.