OSK vs CAT vs FSS Stock Comparison

Oshkosh, Caterpillar and Federal Signal Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
OSK Oshkosh Corp
$134.20 +1.0% 1M -3.6% 1Y
Market cap
$8.59B
P/E
15.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$10.61B
Div. yield
–
Heavy Equipment Industrials
3 wins
CAT Caterpillar Inc
$713.64 -13.1% 1M +35.4% 1Y
Market cap
$330.59B
P/E
30.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$74.73B
Div. yield
0.01%
Heavy Equipment Industrials
6 wins
FSS Federal Signal Corp /De/
$115.92 +1.1% 1M -7.5% 1Y
Market cap
$6.85B
P/E
24.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.45B
Div. yield
0.01%
Heavy Equipment Industrials
3 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Caterpillar leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Caterpillar 6, Oshkosh 3, Federal Signal 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionOSKCATFSSLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $8.59B $330.59B $6.85B CAT
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 15.4x 30.5x 24.0x OSK
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 13.4x 27.7x 23.6x OSK
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +2.2% +18.4% +24.0% FSS
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 5.2% 14.5% 11.7% CAT
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 11.4% 15.9% 15.3% CAT
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.7x 2.5x 0.8x OSK
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.01% 0.01% CAT
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -3.6% +35.4% -7.5% CAT
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +4.5%/yr +28.5%/yr +22.1%/yr CAT
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 40.4% 40.5% 35.0% FSS
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 72/100 51/100 75/100 FSS

Percentile Scorecard

OSKCATFSS

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

AxisOSKCATFSS
Valuation 95 #12 of 203 21 #160 of 203 51 #101 of 203
Growth 59 #78 of 188 67 #63 of 188 94 #13 of 188
Profitability 63 #69 of 183 92 #15 of 183 90 #20 of 183
Financial Health 52 #105 of 217 17 #180 of 217 75 #55 of 217
Shareholder Returns 91 #15 of 153 56 #68 of 153 65 #54 of 153
Overall 72 51 75
  • OSK ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • CAT ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • FSS ranked among 222 companies in Machinery

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodOSKCATFSSSPY
1 month +1.0%-13.1%+1.1% -0.2%
3 months -11.9%-15.2%-1.6% +3.9%
6 months -10.3%-12.7%+3.7% +8.2%
Year to date +6.8%+24.6%+6.8% +12.9%
1 year -3.6%+35.4%-7.5% +12.3%
3 years +55.5%+199.1%+102.4% +87.4%
3 years, per year +15.9%+44.1%+26.5% +23.3%
5 years +24.4%+249.7%+171.6% +67.9%
5 years, per year +4.5%+28.5%+22.1% +10.9%
10 years +155.2%+759.7%+848.6% +261.1%
10 years, per year +9.8%+24.0%+25.2% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureOSKCATFSSSPY
Volatility, 1Y 40.4%40.5%35.0% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 40.5%39.9%35.9% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.401.851.28 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.090.87-0.21 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -43.5%-35.5%-33.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high -24.6%-33.0%-13.3% -1.2%
52-week high $177.94$1,064.90$133.73 $779.14
52-week low $118.59$524.47$104.77 $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.

MultipleOSKCATFSS
P/E now vs peer median 15.1xmedian 25.2x 30.3xmedian 25.2x 24.7xmedian 25.2x
P/S now vs peer median 0.8xmedian 1.9x 4.4xmedian 1.9x 2.9xmedian 1.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 8.7xmedian 14.0x 23.7xmedian 14.0x 15.4xmedian 14.0x
P/FCF now vs peer median 7.4xmedian 21.7x 36.5xmedian 21.7x 20.9xmedian 21.7x
P/B now vs peer median 1.8xmedian 2.3x 16.9xmedian 2.3x 4.7xmedian 2.3x
PEG now vs peer median 1.18median 1.32 2.32median 1.32 0.87median 1.32

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 monthsOSKCATFSS
Revenue $10.61B $74.73B $2.45B
Gross profit $1.69B $25.66B $714.00M
Operating income $797.60M $13.09B $395.40M
Net income $556.30M $10.84B $285.40M
Free cash flow $1.12B $8.99B $339.20M
R&D – $2.27B –
EPS (diluted) $8.87 $23.45 $4.64
Cash & equivalents $403.60M $6.71B $62.80M
Total debt $1.10B $45.15B $453.60M
Shares (diluted) 62.75M 462.50M 61.50M
Enterprise value $7.25B $302.29B $6.59B

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
MetricOSKCATFSS
P/E 15.1x 30.3x 24.7x
P/FCF 7.4x 36.5x 20.9x
P/Operating cash flow 6.4x 24.2x 19.0x
P/S 0.8x 4.4x 2.9x
P/B 1.8x 16.9x 4.7x
P/Tangible book 2.2x 17.3x 6.3x
EV/EBITDA 8.7x 23.7x 15.4x
EV/EBIT 11.3x 28.0x 18.9x
EV/Revenue 0.8x 4.9x 3.1x
EV/FCF 8.0x 40.7x 22.0x
EV/Operating cash flow 6.9x 27.0x 20.0x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 1.18 2.32 0.87

Growth

14 metrics
MetricOSKCATFSS
Revenue growth (1Y) 2.2% 18.4% 24.0%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 5.8% 4.9% 16.1%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -10.2% 11.7% 24.5%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 7.4% 5.6% 22.1%
Operating income growth (1Y) -16.7% 13.7% 27.8%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 8.2% 7.7% 28.8%
Net income growth (1Y) -14.5% 14.9% 28.8%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 11.1% 9.0% 28.6%
EPS growth (1Y) -11.7% 17.1% 28.4%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 12.8% 13.0% 28.6%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 60.6% 19.3% 45.6%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 57.0% 10.6% 59.2%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 99.4% 16.2% 49.8%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 49.8% 7.4% 73.3%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricOSKCATFSS
Gross margin 15.9% 34.3% 29.2%
EBITDA margin 9.8% 20.7% 19.8%
Operating margin 7.5% 17.5% 16.2%
Pretax margin 6.5% 18.6% 15.2%
Net margin 5.2% 14.5% 11.7%
FCF margin 10.6% 12.0% 13.9%
Operating cash flow margin 12.3% 18.2% 15.2%
Return on equity 12.4% 57.0% 19.4%
Return on assets 5.6% 10.9% 11.7%
Return on invested capital 11.4% 15.9% 15.3%
Return on capital employed 11.5% 22.1% 18.5%
Asset turnover 1.1x 0.8x 1.0x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.3x 1.3x 1.3x
Stock comp / revenue 0.4% – 0.6%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricOSKCATFSS
Debt / assets 11.0% 44.0% 18.6%
Debt / equity 0.2x 2.3x 0.3x
Net debt / EBITDA 0.7x 2.5x 0.8x
Debt / FCF 1.0x 5.0x 1.3x
Liabilities / assets 55.0% 81.1% 38.2%
Equity / assets 45.0% 18.9% 61.8%
Interest coverage 6.6x 6.8x 19.3x
Current ratio 1.7x 1.4x 2.7x
Quick ratio 0.7x 0.5x 1.1x
Cash ratio 0.1x 0.2x 0.2x
Altman Z-score 3.18 4.64 7.19

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricOSKCATFSS
Dividend yield 1.7% 0.9% 0.5%
Net buyback yield 4.2% 2.2% 0.0%
Shareholder yield 5.8% 3.1% 0.5%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 25.9% 12.6%
Payout ratio (FCF) – 31.3% 10.6%
Dividend growth (1Y) – 4.2% 13.6%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 4.1% 17.0%

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.

ConsensusOSKCATFSS
Forward P/E 13.4xFY2026 27.7xFY2026 23.6xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $10.00FY2026 $25.79FY2026 $4.92FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -7.3%FY2026 +35.3%FY2026 +16.3%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +46.4% +31.4% +10.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $10.70BFY2026 $84.12BFY2026 $2.79BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +2.6%FY2026 +24.5%FY2026 +28.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +5.3% +1.5% -5.3%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersOSKCATFSS
Held by institutions 100.0% 72.3% 100.0%
Institutions holding 598 4,057 474
Change in shares held, QoQ +5.1% +0.5% +3.9%
Institutions buying 309 1,888 249
Institutions selling 188 1,595 152
Buyers to sellers 1.64 1.18 1.64

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.

OSKCATFSS
OSK 1.00 0.64 0.50
CAT 0.64 1.00 0.50
FSS 0.50 0.50 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, OSK, CAT and FSS?

Caterpillar (CAT) is the largest by market capitalisation: Oshkosh (OSK) $8.59B, Caterpillar (CAT) $330.59B, Federal Signal (FSS) $6.85B.

Which stock is cheaper, OSK, CAT and FSS?

Oshkosh (OSK) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Oshkosh (OSK) 15.4x, Caterpillar (CAT) 30.5x, Federal Signal (FSS) 24.0x). On next year's consensus earnings, Oshkosh (OSK) is cheapest (Oshkosh (OSK) 13.4x, Caterpillar (CAT) 27.7x, Federal Signal (FSS) 23.6x). 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: Oshkosh (OSK) +2.2%, Caterpillar (CAT) +18.4%, Federal Signal (FSS) +24.0%.

Which company is more profitable?

Caterpillar (CAT) has the highest net margin (Oshkosh (OSK) 5.2%, Caterpillar (CAT) 14.5%, Federal Signal (FSS) 11.7%). On return on invested capital, Caterpillar (CAT) leads (Oshkosh (OSK) 11.4%, Caterpillar (CAT) 15.9%, Federal Signal (FSS) 15.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Caterpillar (CAT) returned the most: Oshkosh (OSK) -3.6%, Caterpillar (CAT) +35.4%, Federal Signal (FSS) -7.5%. Over five years, Caterpillar (CAT) compounded fastest (Oshkosh (OSK) +4.5%/yr, Caterpillar (CAT) +28.5%/yr, Federal Signal (FSS) +22.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Caterpillar (CAT) has the highest dividend yield: Oshkosh (OSK) 0.00%, Caterpillar (CAT) 0.01%, Federal Signal (FSS) 0.01%. Oshkosh (OSK) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Federal Signal (FSS) has been the steadiest (Oshkosh (OSK) 40.4%, Caterpillar (CAT) 40.5%, Federal Signal (FSS) 35.0%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

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

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 6. 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.