CAT vs SBUX: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of Caterpillar Inc. and Starbucks Corporation — fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-04-11.
Caterpillar Inc. · Industrials
$792.65
-8.8% upside to fair value
Grade D
VS
Starbucks Corporation · Consumer Cyclical
$96.60
+19.0% upside to fair value
Med Conviction
Grade B+
QuantHub Verdict
SBUX has more upside to fair value
(+19.0%).
CAT trades at a lower forward P/E
(41.7x).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
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Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
CAT |
SBUX |
| Current Price |
$792.65 |
$96.60 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$723.13 |
$115.00 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
-8.8%
|
+19.0%
|
| Market Cap |
$370.9B |
$110.1B |
| Forward P/E |
41.7x
|
42.2x
|
| EV / EBITDA |
27.2x
|
22.5x
|
| Price / Sales |
5.5x
|
3.0x
|
| Price / FCF |
36.1x
|
45.1x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+8.5%
|
+2.8%
|
| Gross Margin |
32.3%
|
24.2%
|
| Operating Margin |
16.6%
|
9.6%
|
| Return on Equity |
45.1%
|
-22.9%
|
| Dividend Yield |
0% |
2.55% |
| FCF Yield |
2.77%
|
2.2%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Buy
|
Hold
|
Investment Thesis
Caterpillar Inc. is the world's leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, engines, and industrial machinery, with a strong global footprint and a record $67.6 billion in revenues for 2025. The company benefits from a durable competitive position supported by a broad product portfolio and a large installed base, but faces margin pressure from tariffs and cost inflation. Despite so…
Starbucks is the world's largest specialty coffee retailer with over 39,000 stores across 86 markets, generating $37.2B in annual revenue. Under CEO Brian Niccol, now 19 months into his tenure after joining from Chipotle in September 2024, the company is executing the Back to Starbucks operational turnaround focused on service speed, menu simplification, and store experience reinvention. At P/S 2…
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
CAT |
SBUX |
| Zone Low |
$542.35 |
$88.00 |
| Zone High |
$614.66 |
$98.00 |
| In Buy Zone? |
No
|
Yes
|