CAT vs PANW: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of Caterpillar Inc. and Palo Alto Networks, Inc. — fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-05-13.
Caterpillar Inc. · Industrials
$912.14
-47.9% upside to fair value
Grade D
High Quality
VS
Palo Alto Networks, Inc. · Technology
$174.41
-0.1% upside to fair value
Grade B
High Quality
QuantHub Verdict
PANW has more upside to fair value
(-0.1%).
CAT trades at a lower forward P/E
(44.9x).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
See all research →
Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
CAT |
PANW |
| Current Price |
$912.14 |
$174.41 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$475.00 |
$174.18 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
-47.9%
|
-0.1%
|
| Market Cap |
$420.2B |
$118.9B |
| Forward P/E |
44.9x
|
94.6x
|
| EV / EBITDA |
30.0x
|
52.3x
|
| Price / Sales |
5.9x
|
12.0x
|
| Price / FCF |
36.7x
|
29.2x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+22.2%
|
+14.9%
|
| Gross Margin |
32.5%
|
73.5%
|
| Operating Margin |
16.6%
|
14.4%
|
| Return on Equity |
47.5%
|
15.5%
|
| Dividend Yield |
1.5% |
0% |
| FCF Yield |
2.73%
|
3.42%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Hold
|
Strong Buy
|
Investment Thesis
Caterpillar is the world's leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, with diversified revenue across Construction Industries, Resource Industries, Energy & Transportation, and Cat Financial. Q1 2026 results reported April 30 showed revenue of $17.4 billion (+22.2% YoY) and EPS of $5.50 (+30.3% YoY), driven by powerful demand from data center build-outs (large engine and power gen…
Palo Alto Networks, Inc. is a leading global cybersecurity company specializing in AI-driven security platforms with a strong recurring revenue base exceeding 80% of total revenue. The company benefits from a high gross margin of 73.5% and solid profitability with a net margin of 13.0%, supported by accelerating revenue growth of 14.9% and earnings growth of 61.6% in the most recent quarter. Unde…
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
CAT |
PANW |
| Zone Low |
$356.00 |
$130.63 |
| Zone High |
$404.00 |
$148.05 |
| In Buy Zone? |
No
|
No
|