Haverhill Financial Research · News · Earnings · October 26, 2026
What happens Thursday
Caterpillar releases third-quarter results at 6:30am Eastern on Thursday, October 29, with a call at 8:30am. One naming note before the numbers: the segment formerly called Energy & Transportation now reports as Power & Energy, with rail moved into Resource Industries. Anyone comparing against an older model will mismatch the lines.
Where the business stands
Second-quarter sales and revenues were $20.54 billion, up 24%, with higher volume contributing about $3.1 billion and price realisation $595 million. Adjusted profit was $8.17 a share against $4.72 a year earlier, on an adjusted operating margin of 21.9%.
The segment detail is where the story has changed. Construction Industries grew 35% to $8.35 billion. Resource Industries grew 20% to $4.65 billion. Power & Energy grew 17% to $8.24 billion with segment profit up 30% — making it the largest part of Caterpillar by sales.
Why it matters
Caterpillar has always been read as a bet on construction and mining — a cyclical machine that rises and falls with building activity and commodity prices. Power & Energy overtaking Construction Industries by sales changes what the company is. Reciprocating engines, generator sets and turbines sell into data centres, oil and gas, and backup power for the grid, and that demand runs on a different clock from housing starts.
It is the same underlying force driving GE Vernova's order book: electricity demand is growing again, and the equipment to generate it is scarce. Caterpillar sits a layer below the big turbines, in the distributed and backup power that every data centre needs regardless of what supplies its main load.
What to watch
Tariffs, first. The second quarter included $392 million of expected tariff recoveries, which flattered operating profit rather than hurting it. Whether that line repeats, reverses or disappears is a real swing factor in the margin comparison, and it is easy to misread as underlying performance.
Second, the backlog. Management described order rates as strong and the backlog as growing, but the second-quarter release gave no dollar figure. Third-party reports have circulated a record number; Caterpillar has not confirmed one in its own release, so treat Thursday's disclosure as the first reliable read.
Third, guidance. Caterpillar gave no quantified 2026 outlook at the half year and said it planned to discuss fourth-quarter and full-year adjusted earnings excluding pension remeasurement. Any numbers there will be new.
Sources and disclosures
Figures come from Caterpillar's own second-quarter 2026 results release, filed with the SEC as a Form 8-K exhibit, and its announcement of the third-quarter results date.
Disclosures. Haverhill Financial Research is a publisher of general financial commentary. This article is not personalized investment advice and does not consider any reader's financial situation; readers should do their own research. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Company figures and guidance can change. The author of this post does not hold a position in Caterpillar. Data as of October 26, 2026.
