CAT vs. PWR: Caterpillar vs. Quanta Services Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Caterpillar (CAT) and Quanta Services (PWR) 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 Quanta Services (PWR) both fall under the Capital Goods industry group, but CAT is classified in Machinery while PWR is classified in Construction & Engineering.

Company profile comparison for Caterpillar (CAT) and Quanta Services (PWR)
Profile Item	CAT	PWR
Name	Caterpillar Inc.	Quanta Services, Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Industrials	Industrials
GICS Industry Group	Capital Goods	Capital Goods
GICS Industry	Machinery	Construction & Engineering
GICS Sub-Industry	Construction Machinery & Heavy Transportation Equipment	Construction & Engineering
Market Capitalization	255.63 billion USD	81.50 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	January 2, 1962	February 12, 1998
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

CAT

PWR

GSPC

Caterpillar (CAT) vs. Quanta Services (PWR), 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 Quanta Services (PWR). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Caterpillar (CAT) and Quanta Services (PWR)
Metric	CAT	PWR
Total Return (1Y)	6.75%	32.97%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	38.34%	51.81%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	25.28%	38.19%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

CAT

PWR

GSPC

Caterpillar (CAT) vs. Quanta Services (PWR), 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 Quanta Services (PWR). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Caterpillar (CAT) and Quanta Services (PWR)
Metric	CAT	PWR
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	41.33%	50.22%
Beta (5Y)	1.65	1.29
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-47.79%	-35.15%
Avg. Volume (3M)	2.82M	1.19M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

CAT and PWR 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 Quanta Services (PWR)
Metric	CAT	PWR
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.06	0.57
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.08	0.87

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Caterpillar (CAT) at 56.14% clears its industry range for ROE, a sharper capital-efficiency signal than Quanta Services (PWR) at 18.02%, 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%

PWR

Capital Goods industry group

18.02%

Max: 40.55%
Q3: 19.29%
PWR: 18.02%
Median: 12.12%
Q1: 4.08%
Min: -17.12%

Caterpillar (CAT) vs. Quanta Services (PWR): A comparison of their ROE against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Caterpillar (CAT) at 15.21% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Quanta Services (PWR) at 4.51%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

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%

PWR

Capital Goods industry group

4.51%

Max: 27.47%
Q3: 12.10%
Median: 6.30%
PWR: 4.51%
Q1: 1.40%
Min: -12.89%

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

Operating Margin (TTM)

Caterpillar (CAT) at 20.19% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Quanta Services (PWR) at 8.63%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

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%

PWR

Capital Goods industry group

8.63%

Max: 36.60%
Q3: 18.33%
Median: 11.12%
PWR: 8.63%
Q1: 5.14%
Min: -12.63%

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

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Caterpillar (CAT) and Quanta Services (PWR)
Metric	CAT	PWR
ROE (TTM)	56.14%	18.02%
ROA (TTM)	9.09%	5.72%
Net Margin (TTM)	15.21%	4.51%
Operating Margin (TTM)	20.19%	8.63%
Gross Margin (TTM)	29.54%	15.76%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Quanta Services (PWR) at 20.31% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Caterpillar (CAT) at 4.29% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for PWR.

Caterpillar (CAT) vs. Quanta Services (PWR): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Caterpillar (CAT) at -14.69% and Quanta Services (PWR) at 12.77% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Caterpillar (CAT) vs. Quanta Services (PWR): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Caterpillar (CAT) and Quanta Services (PWR)
Metric	CAT	PWR
Revenue Growth (YoY)	4.29%	20.31%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	4.38%	18.60%
EPS Growth (YoY)	-14.69%	12.77%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	14.17%	27.00%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Caterpillar (CAT) at 1.42 and Quanta Services (PWR) at 1.16 run current ratio in the tighter-liquidity quartile of industry peers, leaving thinner cushions against current liabilities than typical competitors.

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

PWR

Capital Goods industry group

1.16

Max: 5.22
Q3: 2.95
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.43
PWR: 1.16
Min: 0.36

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

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Quanta Services (PWR) at 0.71 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

PWR

Capital Goods industry group

0.71

Max: 2.33
Q3: 1.12
PWR: 0.71
Median: 0.60
Q1: 0.29
Min: 0.00

Caterpillar (CAT) vs. Quanta Services (PWR): 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 Quanta Services (PWR)
Metric	CAT	PWR
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.42	1.16
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	2.10	0.71
Net Debt / EBITDA	2.25	1.43

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Caterpillar (CAT) at 1.13% and Quanta Services (PWR) at 0.09% 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%

PWR

Capital Goods industry group

0.09%

Max: 2.66%
Q3: 1.14%
Median: 0.24%
PWR: 0.09%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

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

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Caterpillar (CAT) at 24.18% and Quanta Services (PWR) at 3.98% 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%

PWR

Capital Goods industry group

3.98%

Max: 67.39%
Q3: 28.02%
Median: 6.86%
PWR: 3.98%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

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

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Caterpillar (CAT) and Quanta Services (PWR)
Metric	CAT	PWR
Dividend Yield (TTM)	1.13%	0.09%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	24.18%	3.98%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Caterpillar (CAT) at 21.92 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Quanta Services (PWR) at 48.95 sits in the richer quartile — PWR 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

PWR

Capital Goods industry group

48.95

Max: 59.38
PWR: 48.95
Q3: 35.92
Median: 25.41
Q1: 19.47
Min: 3.03

Caterpillar (CAT) vs. Quanta Services (PWR): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Capital Goods industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both Caterpillar (CAT) at 3.29 and Quanta Services (PWR) at 2.19 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

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

PWR

Capital Goods industry group

2.19

Max: 7.54
Q3: 3.76
PWR: 2.19
Median: 2.15
Q1: 1.03
Min: 0.03

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

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both look rich against book: Quanta Services (PWR) at 7.73 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

PWR

Capital Goods industry group

7.73

Max: 9.66
PWR: 7.73
Q3: 5.00
Median: 3.12
Q1: 1.81
Min: -1.08

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

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Caterpillar (CAT) and Quanta Services (PWR)
Metric	CAT	PWR
P/E Ratio (TTM)	21.92	48.95
P/S Ratio (TTM)	3.29	2.19
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	11.90	7.73
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	1.55%	3.78%