Caterpillar (CAT) Competitors

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) and Astec Industries (NASDAQ:ASTE) are both industrials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, media sentiment, dividends, profitability, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk and valuation.

Is CAT or ASTE more profitable?

Caterpillar has a net margin of 15.71% compared to Astec Industries' net margin of 1.15%. Caterpillar's return on equity of 53.77% beat Astec Industries' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Caterpillar	15.71%	53.77%	11.64%
Astec Industries	1.15%	10.72%	6.41%

Is CAT or ASTE a better dividend stock?

Caterpillar pays an annual dividend of $6.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.5%. Astec Industries pays an annual dividend of $0.52 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Caterpillar pays out 29.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Astec Industries pays out 78.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Caterpillar has raised its dividend for 30 consecutive years. Caterpillar is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Does the media prefer CAT or ASTE?

In the previous week, Caterpillar had 58 more articles in the media than Astec Industries. MarketBeat recorded 60 mentions for Caterpillar and 2 mentions for Astec Industries. Caterpillar's average media sentiment score of 1.35 beat Astec Industries' score of 0.62 indicating that Caterpillar is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Caterpillar	54 Very Positive mention(s)	3 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Astec Industries	1 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Which has more risk and volatility, CAT or ASTE?

Caterpillar has a beta of 1.38, suggesting that its stock price is 38% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Astec Industries has a beta of 1.4, suggesting that its stock price is 40% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has stronger earnings & valuation, CAT or ASTE?

Caterpillar has higher revenue and earnings than Astec Industries. Caterpillar is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Astec Industries, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Caterpillar	$63.26B	2.92	$10.79B	$20.52	19.08
Astec Industries	$1.33B	0.72	$4.30M	$0.66	62.97

Do insiders and institutionals believe in CAT or ASTE?

71.0% of Caterpillar shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 93.2% of Astec Industries shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Caterpillar shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.7% of Astec Industries shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Do analysts prefer CAT or ASTE?

Caterpillar currently has a consensus target price of $380.83, suggesting a potential downside of 2.73%. Astec Industries has a consensus target price of $41.00, suggesting a potential downside of 1.35%. Given Astec Industries' higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Astec Industries is more favorable than Caterpillar.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Caterpillar	0 Sell rating(s)	5 Hold rating(s)	9 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.73
Astec Industries	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00

Summary

Caterpillar beats Astec Industries on 15 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.