CAT vs. HEI: Caterpillar vs. HEICO Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Caterpillar (CAT) and HEICO (HEI) 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

Caterpillar (CAT) and HEICO (HEI) both fall under the Capital Goods industry group, but CAT is classified in Machinery while HEI is classified in Aerospace & Defense.

Company profile comparison for Caterpillar (CAT) and HEICO (HEI)
Profile Item	CAT	HEI
Name	Caterpillar Inc.	HEICO Corporation
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Capital Goods	Capital Goods
GICS Industry	Machinery	Aerospace & Defense
GICS Sub-Industry	Construction Machinery & Heavy Transportation Equipment	Aerospace & Defense
Market Capitalization	255.63 billion USD	46.49 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	January 2, 1962	March 17, 1980
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

CAT

HEI

GSPC

Caterpillar (CAT) vs. HEICO (HEI), 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 Caterpillar (CAT) and HEICO (HEI). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Caterpillar (CAT) and HEICO (HEI)
Metric	CAT	HEI
Total Return (1Y)	6.75%	6.50%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	38.34%	28.48%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	25.28%	18.19%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

CAT

HEI

GSPC

Caterpillar (CAT) vs. HEICO (HEI), 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 Caterpillar (CAT) and HEICO (HEI). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Caterpillar (CAT) and HEICO (HEI)
Metric	CAT	HEI
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	41.33%	33.37%
Beta (5Y)	1.65	1.06
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-47.79%	-27.11%
Avg. Volume (3M)	2.82M	480.74K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

CAT and HEI 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 Caterpillar (CAT) and HEICO (HEI)
Metric	CAT	HEI
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.06	0.07
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.08	0.10

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Caterpillar (CAT) at 56.14% clears its industry range for ROE, a sharper capital-efficiency signal than HEICO (HEI) at 17.73%, which is closer to a typical peer reading.

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%

HEI

Capital Goods industry group

17.73%

Max: 40.55%
Q3: 19.29%
HEI: 17.73%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

Caterpillar (CAT) vs. HEICO (HEI): A comparison of their ROE against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

For every dollar of sales, both Caterpillar (CAT) at 15.21% and HEICO (HEI) at 16.38% retain more as net profit than most peers, landing in the top net margin quartile of their industries.

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%

HEI

Capital Goods industry group

16.38%

Max: 27.47%
HEI: 16.38%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

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

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both Caterpillar (CAT) at 20.19% and HEICO (HEI) at 25.14% convert sales into operating profit at a top-quartile rate, pointing to tighter cost discipline before financing and tax.

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%

HEI

Capital Goods industry group

25.14%

Max: 36.60%
HEI: 25.14%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

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

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Caterpillar (CAT) and HEICO (HEI)
Metric	CAT	HEI
ROE (TTM)	56.14%	17.73%
ROA (TTM)	9.09%	8.50%
Net Margin (TTM)	15.21%	16.38%
Operating Margin (TTM)	20.19%	25.14%
Gross Margin (TTM)	29.54%	40.40%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Caterpillar (CAT) at 4.29% and HEICO (HEI) at 16.26% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Caterpillar (CAT) vs. HEICO (HEI): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

HEICO (HEI) at 33.52% sits in the top EPS growth quartile, while Caterpillar (CAT) at -14.69% is closer to the peer norm — faster per-share earnings growth for HEI.

Caterpillar (CAT) vs. HEICO (HEI): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Caterpillar (CAT) and HEICO (HEI)
Metric	CAT	HEI
Revenue Growth (YoY)	4.29%	16.26%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	4.38%	26.64%
EPS Growth (YoY)	-14.69%	33.52%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	14.17%	24.32%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

HEICO (HEI) at 2.72 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Caterpillar (CAT) at 1.42 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for CAT.

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

HEI

Capital Goods industry group

2.72

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
HEI: 2.72
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
Min: 0.36

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

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

HEICO (HEI) at 0.45 carries an industry-typical debt-to-equity mix, while Caterpillar (CAT) at 2.10 uses more debt funding than most peers.

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

HEI

Capital Goods industry group

0.45

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
Median: 0.60
HEI: 0.45
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

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

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Caterpillar (CAT) and HEICO (HEI)
Metric	CAT	HEI
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.42	2.72
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	2.10	0.45
Net Debt / EBITDA	2.25	1.56

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Caterpillar (CAT) at 1.13% and HEICO (HEI) at 0.08% pay solid, industry-typical yields, sitting squarely within their peers’ usual range.

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%

HEI

Capital Goods industry group

0.08%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
Median: 0.24%
HEI: 0.08%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

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

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Caterpillar (CAT) at 24.18% and HEICO (HEI) at 4.17% keep payout ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges — dividend policies that share earnings without consuming too much of them.

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%

HEI

Capital Goods industry group

4.17%

Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
HEI: 4.17%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

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

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Caterpillar (CAT) and HEICO (HEI)
Metric	CAT	HEI
Dividend Yield (TTM)	1.13%	0.08%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	24.18%	4.17%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Caterpillar (CAT) at 21.92 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while HEICO (HEI) at 55.44 sits in the richer quartile — HEI needs stronger growth or earnings quality to justify the premium.

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

HEI

Capital Goods industry group

55.44

Max: 59.38
HEI: 55.44
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

Caterpillar (CAT) vs. HEICO (HEI): 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 HEICO (HEI) at 8.98 clears its benchmark range — HEI looks notably rich on sales.

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

HEI

Capital Goods industry group

8.98

HEI: 8.98
Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

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

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both look rich against book: HEICO (HEI) at 9.40 sits in the upper P/B ratio quartile, and Caterpillar (CAT) at 11.90 prices even higher, above its industry range.

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

HEI

Capital Goods industry group

9.40

Max: 9.66
HEI: 9.40
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

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

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Caterpillar (CAT) and HEICO (HEI)
Metric	CAT	HEI
P/E Ratio (TTM)	21.92	55.44
P/S Ratio (TTM)	3.29	8.98
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	11.90	9.40
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	1.55%	1.82%