CAT vs TMO: Which Is the Better Buy?

Side-by-side comparison of Caterpillar Inc. and Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. โ€” fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals. Updated 2026-06-20.
Caterpillar Inc. ยท Industrials
$985.82
-39.7% upside to fair value
Grade C High Quality
VS
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. ยท Healthcare
$464.61
+7.2% upside to fair value
Grade A High Quality
QuantHub Verdict
TMO has more upside to fair value (+7.2%). TMO trades at a lower forward P/E (25.2x). These are model outputs โ€” not personalized investment advice. See all research โ†’
Valuation & Fundamentals
Metric CAT TMO
Current Price $985.82 $464.61
Fair Value Estimate $594.71 $498.27
Upside to Fair Value -39.7% +7.2%
Market Cap $454.1B $172.7B
Forward P/E 48.9x 25.2x
EV / EBITDA 31.0x 19.1x
Price / Sales 6.4x 3.8x
Price / FCF 39.7x 25.6x
Revenue Growth YoY +22.2% +6.2%
Gross Margin 32.5% 39.4%
Operating Margin 16.6% 17.8%
Return on Equity 47.5% 13.3%
Dividend Yield 0% 0%
FCF Yield 2.52% 3.91%
Analyst Consensus Buy Strong Buy
Investment Thesis
CAT โ€” Caterpillar Inc.
Caterpillar Inc. is a leading global manufacturer of construction, mining, and power generation equipment with a durable competitive moat supported by its #1 global market share in core construction and mining equipment segments, typically in the 20-30%+ range. The company benefits from a stable and experienced management team, strong capital allocation focused on share repurchases and dividends,โ€ฆ
TMO โ€” Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.
Thermo Fisher Scientific is a leading healthcare company specializing in life science tools, diagnostics, and contract research and manufacturing services. It operates with a broad, multi-layered moat driven by scale, integration, and a long-tenured management team. The company exhibits solid fundamentals with a 13.3% ROE, 6.2% revenue growth, and 9.6% earnings growth in the most recent quarter. โ€ฆ
Accumulation Zones
Metric CAT TMO
Zone Low $446.03 $373.70
Zone High $505.50 $423.53
In Buy Zone? No No
โ† CAT Research    TMO Research โ†’    All Research