ASML HOLDING NV vs CATERPILLAR INC, two Industrial Machinery stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
ASML and Caterpillar both sit in industrial machinery, but ASML builds the lithography systems that print computer chips while Caterpillar builds earth-movers. ASML keeps a 29% net margin against Caterpillar's 13, and the two post similar returns on equity, ASML at 49 and Caterpillar at roughly 51. The split shows up underneath: ASML earns a 19% return on assets versus Caterpillar's 9.87, so ASML turns each dollar of assets into more profit. Caterpillar trades near 46 times earnings to ASML's 71, with the market paying the wider premium for the chipmaking-tool maker over the construction and mining name.
Comparison updated 2026-06-15.
| Metric | ASML | CAT |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1797.32 | $951.67 |
| Market cap | $699.0B | $443.3B |
| Sector | Industrial Machinery | Industrial Machinery |
| Stage | Mature | Mature |
| P/E | 66.9 | 47.4 |
| P/B | 32.79 | 23.76 |
| P/S | 19.69 | 6.27 |
| EV/EBITDA | 51.5 | 31.4 |
| Revenue growth | +15.5% | +12.3% |
| Gross margin | 52.8% | — |
| Operating margin | 34.6% | 17.7% |
| Net margin | 29.4% | 13.3% |
| Return on equity | 49.0% | 50.5% |
| Return on assets | 19.0% | 9.9% |
| Return on invested capital | 37.2% | 49.4% |
| FCF yield | 1.7% | 2.1% |
| Dividend yield | 0.4% | 0.6% |
| Debt / equity | 0.22 | 0.00 |
| Current ratio | 1.26 | 1.35 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 8.02 | 5.46 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 8 / 9 | 6 / 9 |
Each week boothcheck ranks the stocks whose prices are betting on the most. Read the most stretched bets archive →
boothcheck is also on Android. Get the app on Google Play →
The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.