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STOCK COMPARISON

Caterpillar vs Parker-Hannifin: Fair Value & Quality

Both stocks run through our valuation models. Here is how Caterpillar (CAT) and Parker-Hannifin (PH) compare, as of Oct 30, 2026.

As of Oct 30, 2026, Fair Value Calculator sees Parker-Hannifin as the less overvalued of the two: Caterpillar trades at $623 versus a fair value of $308 (−50.5%), while Parker-Hannifin trades at $900 versus $495 (−45.0%).
Caterpillar
CAT · USD · Industrials
−50.5%
upside to fair value
overvalued
Price$623
Fair Value$308
Quality65/100
Fair ValueQualityUptrend
Parker-Hannifin
PH · USD · Industrials
−45.0%
upside to fair value
overvalued
Price$900
Fair Value$495
Quality70/100
Fair ValueQualityUptrend
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Head-to-head numbers

Green is the better side of a row, red the weaker one (for valuation multiples: lower = cheaper). Grey rows are for reference only and are not scored.

betterweakerfor reference, not scored

CaterpillarParker-Hannifin
Valuation
27.9×P/E (TTM)32.6×
19.1×Forward P/E22.6×
17.5×Median P/E at FY-end (ex one-offs where documented)23.1×
4.01×P/S (TTM)5.52×
14.05×P/B7.70× · book value is mostly goodwill
19.7×EV/EBITDA22.1×
1.24×PEG3.23×
−50.5%Fair value upside−45.0%
1.0%Dividend yield0.8%
$6.16Dividend per share$7.40
Profitability
22.2%Operating margin23.5%
1.52×EBIT margin trend (5Y)1.29×
57.0%Return on equity25.1%
9.0%Return on assets11.8%
Growth
24.0%Revenue growth (YoY)9.8%
4.4%Avg. growth/yr (3Y)4.1%
10.1%Avg. growth/yr (5Y)8.4%
+13.0%Value creation/yr+23.9%
Balance & size
10.9×Interest coverage (EBIT/interest)11.6×
1.44×Debt / equity0.44×
$299BMarket cap$119B
healthyGrowth qualityhealthy
Caterpillar, median P/E at fiscal year-end, 9 fiscal years (2017 to 2025), reported earnings, FY2025 ex one-offs: 17.5. Parker-Hannifin, median P/E at fiscal year-end, 10 fiscal years (2017 to 2026), reported earnings, 5 of the years ex one-offs: 23.1.
Forward P/E: price divided by the analyst consensus for the first fiscal year that has not started yet. The current year carries special items from quarters already reported.

Caterpillar leads: 8 to 6 metric wins.

n/a = not meaningfully computable, for example with negative equity.

Quality in detail

The quality score, broken down into the same factor families as on the stock page, 0 to 100 per family.

Caterpillar Parker-Hannifin
ProfitabilityHow much profit the company makes from its sales and capital
61
64
Quality GrowthAre margins and returns getting better?
22
44
CashflowDo the profits arrive as real cash?
68
72
Financial strengthDebt, balance sheet and risk of trouble
51
65
InvestmentDoes it invest with discipline instead of growing at any price?
72
74
Low VolatilityHow calm the share price moves, does not count
30
63
MomentumPrice trend of the last 3 to 12 months, does not count
29
46
Near the 52-week highDistance to the 52-week high, does not count
28
48
New sharesBuys back shares or issues new ones?
97
94

What the models say

How far the median fair value (base case) per model family sits from the current price, in percent. The amount in the currency of the trading venue is shown underneath.

above the price, more than 15% above close to the price, 85% to 115% of the price below the price, more than 15% below

Model familyCaterpillarPrice $623Parker-HannifinPrice $900
DCF Models−47.3%below the price$328−45.7%below the price$489
Earnings-Based−78.4%below the price$135−76.1%below the price$215
Dividend Discount−85.7%below the price$88.93−87.1%below the price$116
Multiples−51.6%below the price$301−43.2%below the price$511
Asset-Based−96.3%below the price$22.97n/a
Growth DCF−53.2%below the price$291−55.2%below the price$403
Economic Profit−76.7%below the price$145−71.6%below the price$256
Growth Earnings−42.0%below the price$361−41.5%below the price$526
Matching families7 of 8
Minimum−85.7%below the price$88.93−87.1%below the price$116
Maximum−42.0%below the price$361−41.5%below the price$526
Median−53.2%below the price$291−55.2%below the price$403
Geometric mean−66.2%below the price$210−64.5%below the price$319
Ahead family by family2 of 75 of 7

Minimum, maximum, median and geometric mean only use the families both stocks have (matching families: 7 of 8), so a family without a value on one side does not distort the comparison. Ahead in a family is the stock whose fair value there sits higher relative to its price. Geometric because deviations are ratios: half the price and twice the price average to 100%, not 125%.

Family by family: Parker-Hannifin is ahead in 5 of 7 shared families, Caterpillar in 2.

Caterpillar: 26 of 26 models see the stock below the current price.

Parker-Hannifin: 24 of 24 models see the stock below the current price.

Scenario ranges

From our cautious bear scenario to the optimistic bull scenario. The white tick is the current price (value above it), the green tick the fair value (value below it): if the price sits left of the fair value, there is room to rise.

Caterpillar
Price $623
Fair Value $308
Bear $203Bull $404
Parker-Hannifin
Price $900
Fair Value $495
Bear $312Bull $654

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Ranked within their sector

Where each stock sits within its sector peer group. Band = middle 50% of peers, tick = median, dot = this stock.

Caterpillar · Industrials

Quality score65 · Top 25%
Fair value upside−50.5% · bottom 25%

Parker-Hannifin · Industrials

Quality score70 · Top 25%
Fair value upside−45.0% · below median

Bottom line

As of Oct 30, 2026, Fair Value Calculator sees Parker-Hannifin as the less overvalued of the two: Caterpillar trades at $623 versus a fair value of $308 (−50.5%), while Parker-Hannifin trades at $900 versus $495 (−45.0%).

Parker-Hannifin has the higher quality score (70/100).

Open Parker-Hannifin live analysis →

More comparisons

Popular match-ups from the same sectors, all with fair value and quality score.

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A model-based valuation snapshot from 26 models. Values change with price and fundamentals; the date shown above applies.