Caterpillar Stock Shares $38 Bil Success With Investors
In the last five years, Caterpillar (CAT) stock has returned $38 Bil back to its shareholders through cold, hard cash via dividends and buybacks. Let’s look at some numbers and compare how this payout power stacks up against the market’s biggest capital-return machines.
As it turns out, CAT stock has returned the 43rd highest amount to shareholders in history.
| CAT | S&P Median | |
|---|---|---|
| Dividends | $13 Bil | $3.0 Bil |
| Share Repurchase | $25 Bil | $3.0 Bil |
| Total Returned | $38 Bil | $6.0 Bil |
| Total Returned as % of Current Market Cap | 10.4% | 16.7% |
Why should you care? Because dividends and share repurchases represent direct, tangible returns of capital to shareholders. They also signal management’s confidence in the company’s financial health and ability to generate sustainable cash flows. And there are more stocks like that. Here is a list of the top 10 companies ranked by total capital returned to shareholders via dividends and stock repurchases.
Top 10 Stocks By Total Shareholder Return
| Total Money Returned | As % Of Current Market Cap | via Dividends | via Share Repurchases | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AAPL | $514 Bil | 13.5% | $75 Bil | $439 Bil |
| GOOGL | $296 Bil | 7.7% | $17 Bil | $279 Bil |
| MSFT | $223 Bil | 8.0% | $105 Bil | $118 Bil |
| JPM | $176 Bil | 20.9% | $71 Bil | $105 Bil |
| META | $159 Bil | 10.3% | $10 Bil | $149 Bil |
| XOM | $152 Bil | 22.9% | $79 Bil | $73 Bil |
| BAC | $125 Bil | 32.6% | $45 Bil | $80 Bil |
| CVX | $112 Bil | 29.1% | $57 Bil | $55 Bil |
| WFC | $105 Bil | 39.7% | $22 Bil | $83 Bil |
| NVDA | $96 Bil | 2.2% | $3.0 Bil | $93 Bil |
For full ranking, visit Buybacks & Dividends Ranking
What do you notice here? The total capital returned to shareholders as a % of the current market cap appears inversely proportional to growth prospects for reinvestments. Stocks like Meta (META) and Microsoft (MSFT) are growing much faster, in a more predictable way, compared to the others, but they have returned a much lower fraction of their market cap to shareholders.
That’s the flip side to high capital returns. Sure, they are attractive, but you have to ask yourself the question: Am I sacrificing growth and sound fundamentals? With that in mind, let’s look at some numbers for CAT. (see Buy or Sell Caterpillar Stock for more details)
Caterpillar Fundamentals
- Revenue Growth: 4.3% LTM and 4.6% last 3-year average.
- Cash Generation: Nearly 11.0% free cash flow margin and 16.5% operating margin LTM.
- Recent Revenue Shocks: The minimum annual revenue growth in the last 3 years for CAT was -3.4%.
- Valuation: Caterpillar stock trades at a P/E multiple of 40.5
| CAT | S&P Median | |
|---|---|---|
| Sector | Industrials | – |
| Industry | Construction Machinery & Heavy Transportation Equipment | – |
| PE Ratio | 40.5 | 24.3 |
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| LTM* Revenue Growth | 4.3% | 6.8% |
| 3Y Average Annual Revenue Growth | 4.6% | 5.5% |
| Min Annual Revenue Growth Last 3Y | -3.4% | 0.4% |
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| LTM* Operating Margin | 16.5% | 18.6% |
| 3Y Average Operating Margin | 18.7% | 18.1% |
| LTM* Free Cash Flow Margin | 11.0% | 14.2% |
*LTM: Last Twelve Months
The table gives a good overview of what you get from CAT stock, but what about the risk?
CAT Historical Risk
Caterpillar’s no stranger to big hits. It plunged over 73% in the Global Financial Crisis and dropped about 52% in the Dot-Com Bubble. The 2018 correction and Covid pandemic still knocked it down around 33% and 39%, respectively. Even the recent inflation shock dragged it down almost 32%. Sure, CAT is a solid company, but these numbers show that when volatility hits, it’s far from immune.
But the risk is not limited to major market crashes. Stocks fall even when markets are good – think events like earnings, business updates, and outlook changes. Read CAT Dip Buyer Analyses to see how the stock has recovered from sharp dips in the past.
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