Caterpillar (BSP:CATP34) Gross Margin %

Caterpillar Annual Data
	Trend	Dec14	Dec15	Dec16	Dec17	Dec18	Dec19	Dec20	Dec21	Dec22	Dec23
Gross Margin %							30.51	28.93	29.43	29.47	34.69

Caterpillar Quarterly Data
	Mar19	Jun19	Sep19	Dec19	Mar20	Jun20	Sep20	Dec20	Mar21	Jun21	Sep21	Dec21	Mar22	Jun22	Sep22	Dec22	Mar23	Jun23	Sep23	Dec23
Gross Margin %																28.89	34.94	34.69	35.38	33.78

For the Farm & Heavy Construction Machinery subindustry, Caterpillar's Gross Margin %, along with its competitors' market caps and Gross Margin % data, can be viewed below:

* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.

For the Farm & Heavy Construction Machinery industry and Industrials sector, Caterpillar's Gross Margin % distribution charts can be found below:

* The bar in red indicates where Caterpillar's Gross Margin % falls into.

Caterpillar Gross Margin % Calculation

Gross Margin is the percentage of Gross Profit out of sales or Revenue.

Caterpillar's Gross Margin for the fiscal year that ended in Dec. 2023 is calculated as

Caterpillar's Gross Margin for the quarter that ended in Dec. 2023 is calculated as

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

A positive Gross Profit is only the first step for a company to make a net profit. The gross profit needs to be big enough to also cover related labor, equipment, rental, marketing/advertising, research and development and a lot of other costs in selling the products.

Caterpillar  (BSP:CATP34) Gross Margin % Explanation

Warren Buffett believes that firms with excellent long term economics tend to have consistently higher margins.

Durable competitive advantage creates a high Gross Margin % because of the freedom to price in excess of cost. Companies can be categorized by their Gross Margin %

1. Greater than 40% = Durable competitive advantage
2. Less than 40% = Competition eroding margins
3. Less than 20% = no sustainable competitive advantage
Consistency of Gross Margin is key

Caterpillar had a gross margin of 33.78% for the quarter that ended in Dec. 2023 => Competition eroding margins

Be Aware

If a company loses its competitive advantages, usually its gross margin declines well before its sales declines. Watching Gross Margin % and Operating Margin % closely helps avoid value trap situations.

Caterpillar Gross Margin % Related Terms

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Caterpillar (BSP:CATP34) Business Description