Comparing Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) and CVD Equipment (NASDAQ:CVV)

Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) and CVD Equipment (NASDAQ:CVV) are both industrials companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings, risk, valuation, institutional ownership and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares Caterpillar and CVD Equipment’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Caterpillar	14.51%	55.53%	11.38%
CVD Equipment	62.01%	-13.91%	-12.52%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Caterpillar and CVD Equipment”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Caterpillar	$67.59 billion	5.57	$8.88 billion	$23.24	35.22
CVD Equipment	$25.79 million	1.27	-$1.59 million	$1.45	3.24

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Caterpillar and CVD Equipment, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Caterpillar	0	11	14	1	2.62
CVD Equipment	1	0	0	0	1.00

Caterpillar currently has a consensus price target of $994.17, indicating a potential upside of 21.47%. Given Caterpillar’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe Caterpillar is more favorable than CVD Equipment.

Risk & Volatility

Caterpillar has a beta of 1.6, meaning that its share price is 60% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, CVD Equipment has a beta of 1.22, meaning that its share price is 22% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

71.0% of Caterpillar shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 31.6% of CVD Equipment shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Caterpillar shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 28.7% of CVD Equipment shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Caterpillar beats CVD Equipment on 13 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Caterpillar

Caterpillar Inc. manufactures and sells construction and mining equipment, off-highway diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines, and diesel-electric locomotives in worldwide. Its Construction Industries segment offers asphalt pavers, compactors, road reclaimers, forestry machines, cold planers, material handlers, track-type tractors, excavators, telehandlers, motor graders, and pipelayers; compact track, wheel, track-type, backhoe, and skid steer loaders; and related parts and tools. The company's Resource Industries segment provides electric rope and hydraulic shovels, draglines, rotary drills, hard rock vehicles, tractors, mining trucks, wheel loaders, off-highway and articulated trucks, wheel tractor scrapers and dozers, fleet management products, landfill and soil compactors, machinery components, autonomous ready vehicles and solutions, work tools, and safety services and mining performance solutions, as well as related parts and services. Its Energy & Transportation segment offers reciprocating engine powered generator sets; reciprocating engines, drivetrain, and integrated systems and solutions; turbines, centrifugal gas compressors, and related services; and diesel-electric locomotives and components, and other rail-related products. The company's Financial Products segment provides operating and finance leases, installment sale contracts, revolving charge accounts, repair/rebuild financing services, working capital loans, and wholesale financing; and insurance and risk management products and services. Its All Other Operating segment offers filters and fluids, undercarriage, ground engaging tools, fluid transfer products, precision seals, and rubber sealing and connecting components; parts distribution; logistics solutions and distribution services; brand management and marketing strategy services; and digital investments services. Caterpillar Inc. was founded in 1925 and is headquartered in Irving, Texas.

About CVD Equipment

CVD Equipment Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells equipment to develop and manufacture materials and coatings in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: CVD Equipment, Stainless Design Concepts, and CVD Materials. The CVD Equipment segment offers chemical vapor deposition, physical vapor transport, and thermal process equipment under the FirstNano brand for various markets, such as high power electronics, aerospace advanced materials for gas turbine jet engines, and nanomaterials used in batteries, as well as semiconductors, LEDs, carbon nanotubes, nanowires, solar cells, and other industrial and research applications. The Stainless Design Concepts segment provides ultra-high purity gas and chemical delivery control systems, including gas cylinder storage cabinets, custom gas and chemical delivery systems, gas and liquid valve manifold boxes, and gas isolation boxes for semiconductor fabrication processes, aerospace, solar cells, LEDs, carbon nanotubes, nanowires, and industrial applications. The CVD Materials segment offers products related to advanced materials and coatings, such as MesoPlasma printing services and products comprising heaters, antennas, and sensors to aerospace, satellite, power generation, defense, and other markets. The company also provides annealing, diffusion, and low pressure chemical vapor deposition furnaces; and standard and custom fabricated quartz-ware used in its equipment and other customer tools. The company was incorporated in 1982 and is headquartered in Central Islip, New York.