BE vs. CAT: Bloom Energy vs. Caterpillar Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Bloom Energy (BE) and Caterpillar (CAT) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Bloom Energy (BE) and Caterpillar (CAT) both fall under the Capital Goods industry group, but BE is classified in Electrical Equipment while CAT is classified in Machinery.

Company profile comparison for Bloom Energy (BE) and Caterpillar (CAT)
Profile Item	BE	CAT
Name	Bloom Energy Corp. Class A Common Stock	Caterpillar Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Capital Goods	Capital Goods
GICS Industry	Electrical Equipment	Machinery
GICS Sub-Industry	Heavy Electrical Equipment	Construction Machinery & Heavy Transportation Equipment
Market Capitalization	51.20 billion USD	255.63 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	July 25, 2018	January 2, 1962
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

CAT

GSPC

Bloom Energy (BE) vs. Caterpillar (CAT), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Bloom Energy (BE) and Caterpillar (CAT). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Bloom Energy (BE) and Caterpillar (CAT). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Bloom Energy (BE) and Caterpillar (CAT)
Metric	BE	CAT
Total Return (1Y)	46.07%	6.75%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	162.89%	38.34%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	41.93%	25.28%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

CAT

GSPC

Bloom Energy (BE) vs. Caterpillar (CAT), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Bloom Energy (BE) and Caterpillar (CAT). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Bloom Energy (BE) and Caterpillar (CAT)
Metric	BE	CAT
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	112.64%	41.33%
Beta (5Y)	3.61	1.65
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-74.98%	-47.79%
Avg. Volume (3M)	15.48M	2.82M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

BE and CAT are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Bloom Energy (BE) and Caterpillar (CAT)
Metric	BE	CAT
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.37	0.06
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.57	0.08

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both companies show strong equity returns, but Caterpillar (CAT) at 56.14% is the standout with ROE above its industry range; Bloom Energy (BE) at 39.61% also sits in the top quartile.

BE

Capital Goods industry group

39.61%

Max: 40.55%
BE: 39.61%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

CAT

Capital Goods industry group

56.14%

CAT: 56.14%
Max: 40.55%
Q3: 19.29%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

Bloom Energy (BE) vs. Caterpillar (CAT): A comparison of their ROE against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

For every dollar of sales, both Bloom Energy (BE) at 13.53% and Caterpillar (CAT) at 15.21% retain more as net profit than most peers, landing in the top net margin quartile of their industries.

BE

Capital Goods industry group

13.53%

Max: 27.47%
BE: 13.53%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

CAT

Capital Goods industry group

15.21%

Max: 27.47%
CAT: 15.21%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

Bloom Energy (BE) vs. Caterpillar (CAT): A comparison of their net margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both Bloom Energy (BE) at 18.49% and Caterpillar (CAT) at 20.19% convert sales into operating profit at a top-quartile rate, pointing to tighter cost discipline before financing and tax.

BE

Capital Goods industry group

18.49%

Max: 36.60%
BE: 18.49%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

CAT

Capital Goods industry group

20.19%

Max: 36.60%
CAT: 20.19%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

Bloom Energy (BE) vs. Caterpillar (CAT): A comparison of their operating margin against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Bloom Energy (BE) and Caterpillar (CAT)
Metric	BE	CAT
ROE (TTM)	39.61%	56.14%
ROA (TTM)	7.45%	9.09%
Net Margin (TTM)	13.53%	15.21%
Operating Margin (TTM)	18.49%	20.19%
Gross Margin (TTM)	31.77%	29.54%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Bloom Energy (BE) at 37.33% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Caterpillar (CAT) at 4.29% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for BE.

Bloom Energy (BE) vs. Caterpillar (CAT): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Only one side can be read here: Caterpillar (CAT) reports EPS growth of -14.69%, ranked against its industry; Bloom Energy (BE) has no EPS growth figure this period.

Bloom Energy (BE) vs. Caterpillar (CAT): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Bloom Energy (BE) and Caterpillar (CAT)
Metric	BE	CAT
Revenue Growth (YoY)	37.33%	4.29%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	19.06%	4.38%
EPS Growth (YoY)	--	-14.69%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	--	14.17%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Bloom Energy (BE) at 3.74 carries current ratio above its industry’s typical mid-range, while Caterpillar (CAT) at 1.42 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — different working-capital profiles, both worth examining.

BE

Capital Goods industry group

3.74

Max: 5.22
BE: 3.74
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

CAT

Capital Goods industry group

1.42

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
CAT: 1.42
Min: 0.36

Bloom Energy (BE) vs. Caterpillar (CAT): A comparison of their current ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both Bloom Energy (BE) at 1.42 and Caterpillar (CAT) at 2.10 lean more heavily on debt funding than most peers, landing in the higher-leverage quartile of their industries.

BE

Capital Goods industry group

1.42

Max: 2.33
BE: 1.42
Q3: 1.12
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

CAT

Capital Goods industry group

2.10

Max: 2.33
CAT: 2.10
Q3: 1.12
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

Bloom Energy (BE) vs. Caterpillar (CAT): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Bloom Energy (BE) and Caterpillar (CAT)
Metric	BE	CAT
Current Ratio (MRQ)	3.74	1.42
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.42	2.10
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.50	2.25

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Bloom Energy (BE) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Caterpillar (CAT) reports a yield of 1.13%, ranking against industry peers normally.

BE

Capital Goods industry group

0.00%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
Median: 0.24%
BE: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

CAT

Capital Goods industry group

1.13%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
CAT: 1.13%
Median: 0.24%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Bloom Energy (BE) vs. Caterpillar (CAT): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Bloom Energy (BE) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Caterpillar (CAT) reports a payout of 24.18%, ranking against industry peers normally.

BE

Capital Goods industry group

0.00%

Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
BE: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

CAT

Capital Goods industry group

24.18%

Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
CAT: 24.18%
Median: 6.86%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Bloom Energy (BE) vs. Caterpillar (CAT): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Bloom Energy (BE) and Caterpillar (CAT)
Metric	BE	CAT
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.00%	1.13%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	0.00%	24.18%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Caterpillar (CAT) at 21.92 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Bloom Energy (BE) at 104.99 sits above its peer range — an unusually expensive price for BE’s trailing earnings.

BE

Capital Goods industry group

104.99

BE: 104.99
Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

CAT

Capital Goods industry group

21.92

Max: 59.38
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
CAT: 21.92
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

Bloom Energy (BE) vs. Caterpillar (CAT): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Caterpillar (CAT) at 3.29 prices around its industry’s typical P/S ratio, while Bloom Energy (BE) at 13.37 clears its benchmark range — BE looks notably rich on sales.

BE

Capital Goods industry group

13.37

BE: 13.37
Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

CAT

Capital Goods industry group

3.29

Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
CAT: 3.29
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

Bloom Energy (BE) vs. Caterpillar (CAT): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Measured against book value, both Bloom Energy (BE) at 26.49 and Caterpillar (CAT) at 11.90 look expensive — each P/B ratio sits above its industry’s benchmark range.

BE

Capital Goods industry group

26.49

BE: 26.49
Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

CAT

Capital Goods industry group

11.90

CAT: 11.90
Max: 9.66
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

Bloom Energy (BE) vs. Caterpillar (CAT): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Bloom Energy (BE) and Caterpillar (CAT)
Metric	BE	CAT
P/E Ratio (TTM)	104.99	21.92
P/S Ratio (TTM)	13.37	3.29
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	26.49	11.90
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	-0.00%	1.55%