CAT vs TEX vs TRN Stock Comparison

Caterpillar, Terex and Trinity Industries Prices as of Nov 2, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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CAT Caterpillar Inc
$613.45 -27.4% 1M +6.3% 1Y
Market cap
$270.74B
P/E
25.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$74.73B
Div. yield
0.01%
Heavy Equipment Industrials
4 wins
TEX Terex Corp
$57.67 +1.7% 1M +25.3% 1Y
Market cap
$6.54B
P/E
33.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$7.49B
Div. yield
0.01%
Heavy Equipment Industrials
3 wins
TRN Trinity Industries Inc
$30.49 +16.7% 1M +11.4% 1Y
Market cap
$2.46B
P/E
7.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.12B
Div. yield
0.04%
Rail Equipment Industrials
5 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

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

QuestionCATTEXTRNLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $270.74B $6.54B $2.46B CAT
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 25.0x 33.0x 7.5x TRN
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 24.2x 10.9x 14.4x TEX
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +18.4% +40.1% -2.4% TEX
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 14.5% 2.6% 15.4% TRN
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 15.9% 4.7% 8.5% CAT
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.5x 3.0x 5.0x CAT
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.01% 0.04% TRN
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +6.3% +25.3% +11.4% TEX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +24.7%/yr +4.3%/yr +0.9%/yr CAT
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 40.6% 46.8% 37.1% TRN
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 54/100 56/100 61/100 TRN

Percentile Scorecard

CATTEXTRN

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

AxisCATTEXTRN
Valuation 31 #141 of 203 85 #32 of 203 78 #45 of 203
Growth 70 #58 of 189 54 #87 of 189 74 #50 of 189
Profitability 92 #16 of 187 34 #124 of 187 64 #68 of 187
Financial Health 17 #184 of 221 28 #160 of 221 4 #213 of 221
Shareholder Returns 62 #59 of 152 78 #34 of 152 83 #27 of 152
Overall 54 56 61
  • CAT ranked among 223 companies in Machinery
  • TEX ranked among 223 companies in Machinery
  • TRN ranked among 223 companies in Machinery

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodCATTEXTRNSPY
1 month -27.4%+1.7%+16.7% -2.3%
3 months -26.2%-10.5%-2.7% -0.7%
6 months -29.9%-2.3%-12.0% +4.8%
Year to date +7.1%+8.0%+15.3% +10.3%
1 year +6.3%+25.3%+11.4% +10.3%
3 years +154.8%+14.7%+27.0% +73.0%
3 years, per year +36.6%+4.7%+8.3% +20.1%
5 years +201.4%+23.3%+4.6% +61.9%
5 years, per year +24.7%+4.3%+0.9% +10.1%
10 years +656.3%+156.5%+101.5% +258.6%
10 years, per year +22.4%+9.9%+7.3% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureCATTEXTRNSPY
Volatility, 1Y 40.6%46.8%37.1% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 43.1%42.7%35.5% 12.8%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.911.750.44 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.150.540.31 0.80
Max drawdown, 5Y -42.4%-51.8%-43.0% -25.4%
From 52-week high -42.4%-22.7%-20.0% -3.5%
52-week high $1,064.90$74.58$38.09 $779.14
52-week low $546.13$41.78$24.82 $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.

MultipleCATTEXTRN
P/E now vs peer median 26.0xmedian 25.6x 33.0xmedian 25.6x 7.4xmedian 25.6x
P/S now vs peer median 3.8xmedian 1.9x 0.9xmedian 1.9x 1.1xmedian 1.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 20.7xmedian 14.4x 12.1xmedian 14.4x 7.3xmedian 14.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 31.4xmedian 22.5x 15.5xmedian 22.5x -9.2xmedian 22.5x
P/B now vs peer median 14.5xmedian 2.2x 1.3xmedian 2.2x 2.1xmedian 2.2x
PEG now vs peer median 2.00median 1.36 -0.88median 1.36 0.11median 1.36

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 monthsCATTEXTRN
Revenue $74.73B $7.49B $2.12B
Gross profit $25.66B $1.28B $521.30M
Operating income $13.09B $425.00M $731.90M
Net income $10.84B $198.00M $334.90M
Free cash flow $8.99B $419.00M -$259.60M
R&D $2.27B – –
EPS (diluted) $23.45 $1.74 $4.03
Cash & equivalents $6.71B $407.00M $158.30M
Total debt $45.15B $2.58B $5.33B
Shares (diluted) 462.50M 114.00M 81.00M
Enterprise value $242.44B $4.57B $1.82B

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
MetricCATTEXTRN
P/E 26.0x 33.0x 7.4x
P/FCF 31.4x 15.5x -9.2x
P/Operating cash flow 20.8x 11.9x 5.6x
P/S 3.8x 0.9x 1.1x
P/B 14.5x 1.3x 2.1x
P/Tangible book 14.9x 3.2x 2.1x
EV/EBITDA 20.7x 12.1x 7.3x
EV/EBIT 24.5x 20.4x 10.3x
EV/Revenue 4.3x 1.2x 3.6x
EV/FCF 35.6x 20.7x -29.1x
EV/Operating cash flow 23.6x 15.9x 17.9x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.00 -0.88 0.11

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCATTEXTRN
Revenue growth (1Y) 18.4% 40.1% -2.4%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 4.9% 13.3% -8.6%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 11.7% 21.9% -8.9%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 5.6% 3.7% 3.7%
Operating income growth (1Y) 13.7% 8.7% 71.9%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 7.7% -12.8% 24.2%
Net income growth (1Y) 14.9% 26.9% 177.0%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 9.0% -25.7% 52.4%
EPS growth (1Y) 17.1% -26.3% 246.3%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 13.0% -37.4% 65.3%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 19.3% 31.8% 7.8%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 10.6% 8.4% 15.9%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 16.2% 50.2% 33.2%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 7.4% 9.1% 19.2%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCATTEXTRN
Gross margin 34.3% 17.1% 24.6%
EBITDA margin 20.7% 9.6% 48.8%
Operating margin 17.5% 5.7% 34.5%
Pretax margin 18.6% 3.1% 21.9%
Net margin 14.5% 2.6% 15.4%
FCF margin 12.0% 5.6% -12.2%
Operating cash flow margin 18.2% 7.3% 19.9%
Return on equity 57.0% 3.9% 29.4%
Return on assets 10.9% 1.9% 4.0%
Return on invested capital 15.9% 4.7% 8.5%
Return on capital employed 22.1% 5.1% –
Asset turnover 0.8x 0.7x 0.3x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.3x 2.7x 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue – 0.9% 1.1%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCATTEXTRN
Debt / assets 44.0% 25.0% 63.8%
Debt / equity 2.3x 0.5x 4.7x
Net debt / EBITDA 2.5x 3.0x 5.0x
Debt / FCF 5.0x 6.2x -20.5x
Liabilities / assets 81.1% 51.8% 86.4%
Equity / assets 18.9% 48.2% 13.6%
Interest coverage 6.8x 2.2x –
Current ratio 1.4x 1.8x –
Quick ratio 0.5x 0.8x –
Cash ratio 0.2x 0.2x –
Altman Z-score 4.31 2.06 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCATTEXTRN
Dividend yield 1.0% 1.2% 4.1%
Net buyback yield 2.6% 1.2% 2.3%
Shareholder yield 3.6% 2.4% 6.3%
Payout ratio (earnings) 25.9% 34.8% 29.7%
Payout ratio (FCF) 31.3% 16.5% -38.3%
Dividend growth (1Y) 4.2% 50.0% 1.8%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 4.1% 18.8% 6.1%

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.

ConsensusCATTEXTRN
Forward P/E 24.2xFY2026 10.9xFY2026 14.4xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $25.79FY2026 $5.26FY2026 $2.08FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +35.3%FY2026 +6.7%FY2026 -33.8%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +31.4% +9.9% -1.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $84.12BFY2026 $8.62BFY2026 $2.34BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +24.5%FY2026 +59.1%FY2026 +8.2%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +1.5% +8.2% +4.3%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCATTEXTRN
Held by institutions 72.3% 100.0% 95.3%
Institutions holding 4,060 482 345
Change in shares held, QoQ +0.5% +5.4% +6.3%
Institutions buying 1,890 240 171
Institutions selling 1,596 164 97
Buyers to sellers 1.18 1.46 1.76

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.

CATTEXTRN
CAT 1.00 0.59 0.19
TEX 0.59 1.00 0.38
TRN 0.19 0.38 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CAT, TEX and TRN?

Caterpillar (CAT) is the largest by market capitalisation: Caterpillar (CAT) $270.74B, Terex (TEX) $6.54B, Trinity Industries (TRN) $2.46B.

Which stock is cheaper, CAT, TEX and TRN?

Trinity Industries (TRN) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Caterpillar (CAT) 25.0x, Terex (TEX) 33.0x, Trinity Industries (TRN) 7.5x). On next year's consensus earnings, Terex (TEX) is cheapest (Caterpillar (CAT) 24.2x, Terex (TEX) 10.9x, Trinity Industries (TRN) 14.4x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Terex (TEX) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Caterpillar (CAT) +18.4%, Terex (TEX) +40.1%, Trinity Industries (TRN) -2.4%.

Which company is more profitable?

Trinity Industries (TRN) has the highest net margin (Caterpillar (CAT) 14.5%, Terex (TEX) 2.6%, Trinity Industries (TRN) 15.4%). On return on invested capital, Caterpillar (CAT) leads (Caterpillar (CAT) 15.9%, Terex (TEX) 4.7%, Trinity Industries (TRN) 8.5%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Terex (TEX) returned the most: Caterpillar (CAT) +6.3%, Terex (TEX) +25.3%, Trinity Industries (TRN) +11.4%. Over five years, Caterpillar (CAT) compounded fastest (Caterpillar (CAT) +24.7%/yr, Terex (TEX) +4.3%/yr, Trinity Industries (TRN) +0.9%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Trinity Industries (TRN) has the highest dividend yield: Caterpillar (CAT) 0.01%, Terex (TEX) 0.01%, Trinity Industries (TRN) 0.04%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Trinity Industries (TRN) has been the steadiest (Caterpillar (CAT) 40.6%, Terex (TEX) 46.8%, Trinity Industries (TRN) 37.1%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CAT, TEX and TRN?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Trinity Industries (TRN) 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.