Computers and machinery · 21/36 against 19/36 checks · to 2026-09-11

CAT vs CSCO.

CaterpillarMakes construction and mining machinery, engines and power generators.

CiscoSells the networking gear that runs corporate networks, plus security and observability software.

→Caterpillar (CAT) and Cisco (CSCO) are within reach of each other at $376.3B and $442.1B, and on the filings Caterpillar passes more, 21 checks of 36 against 19.

Which passes more checks?

widest gap first

→No axis separates them by more than 1 of six checks, and the widest is Growth. They score identically on 4 of the six, so the difference between them is narrower than a headline suggests.

	CAT	CSCO
Growth	4/6	3/6
Shareholder returns	6/6	5/6
Value	0/6	0/6
Quality	6/6	6/6
Financial health	4/6	4/6
Trend	1/6	1/6
All checks	21/36	19/36

→Caterpillar turns over $74.7B to Cisco's $63.3B, 1.2 times as much. Caterpillar keeps 14.5% of revenue as profit against 21.0% at Cisco.

Which is growing faster, CAT or CSCO?

→Caterpillar grew revenue faster over the last twelve months, +18.4% against +11.8% at Cisco - 7 points apart. Over three years the order is the same, Caterpillar at +4.4% and Cisco at +3.6%.

	CAT	CSCO
Revenue (TTM)	$74.7B	$63.3B
Revenue growth, 1 year	+18.4%	+11.8%
Revenue CAGR, 3 years	+4.4%	+3.6%
Net income (TTM)	$10.8B	$13.3B
Free cash flow (TTM)	$10.7B	$12.8B

Which hands more back to owners?

→Both pay: Cisco yields the more at 1.5% against 0.8%. A yield rises when a price falls, so read it beside the payout checks in each report.

	CAT	CSCO
Dividend yield	0.8%	1.5%
Payout ratio	25.9%	49.4%
Years of unbroken dividend	-	-

Which is cheaper?

→Cisco is the cheaper of the two on earnings, 33.7x against 35.7x. Against their own histories, Caterpillar is above its 15.5x median and Cisco is above its 16.0x.

	CAT	CSCO
Share price	$818.57	$112.13
Market cap	$376.3B	$442.1B
P/E	35.7x	33.7x
P/E, own median own 10-year median / own 11-year median	15.5x	16.0x
P/S	5.0x	7.0x
Free cash flow yield	2.8%	2.9%

Which keeps more of each sale?

→Cisco keeps more of each sale: operating margin of 24.3% against 17.5%, a gap of 7 points that flows into everything below it.

	CAT	CSCO
Gross margin	-	64.5%
Operating margin	17.5%	24.3%
Return on equity	55.9%	26.4%

Which balance sheet is stronger?

→Cisco carries much the lighter balance sheet, 0.59x of debt to equity against 1.87x - which matters most in the year a downturn arrives, not this one.

	CAT	CSCO
Debt / equity	1.87x	0.59x
Interest coverage	-	10.5x
Cash and short-term investments	$6.7B	$15.9B

Where they differ most

the checks behind the gap

Growth: Caterpillar 1 ahead

CAT passesOutgrew its sector over the last twelve months 18.4% vs 12.6% (sector 70th pct, n=125)
CAT passesProfits grew over the last twelve months 14.9% vs 0.0%
CAT passesGrowth is speeding up, not slowing last twelve months 18.4% vs three-year pace 4.4%

CSCO failsOutgrew its sector over the last twelve months 11.8% vs 12.6% (sector 70th pct, n=125)
CSCO failsSustained growth beats its sector (3 years) 3.6% vs 9.6% (sector 70th pct, n=123)
CSCO failsProfit growth beats its sector (3 years) 1.7% vs 19.9% (sector 70th pct, n=83)

Shareholder returns: Caterpillar 1 ahead

CAT passesShare count isn't climbing shares down 11.0% over 3 years
CAT passesBuybacks outpace the stock issued to staff $7.2B bought back vs $257M of stock compensation
CAT passesWhat it hands back fits inside its cash flow 93.8% vs 100.0%

CSCO failsDividend per share growing ahead of inflation 7.1% vs 9.0%