Caterpillar stock surges on revenue and earnings beats, demand for power-generation equipment

Caterpillar (CAT) banal surged Thursday greeting aft the concern machinery elephantine reported higher profits arsenic request for its power-generation instrumentality surged amid the build-out of AI information centers.

The institution reported an adjusted nett of $5.16 per stock for the quarter, up from $5.14 ⁠per stock a ‌year earlier. Revenue accrued to $19.1 cardinal from $16.2 cardinal a twelvemonth ago. Those figures were supra Wall Street's expectations of $4.71 net per stock and gross of $17.7 billion, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Its powerfulness and vigor segment, which it called its "largest and fastest-growing segment," saw income to users turn 37% to people a 2nd 4th of double-digit growth, CEO Joseph Creed said connected the company's net telephone Thursday morning

The banal traded up arsenic overmuch arsenic 5% successful aboriginal trading to a grounds precocious but pared immoderate gains amid a broader marketplace sell-off.

Soaring concern plans from the world's biggest tech giants person been a absorption for investors, but these plans to put successful the AI roar person besides pushed concern companies to caller heights arsenic request for powerfulness procreation and operation instrumentality has surged.

Global powerfulness usage by information centers is expected to turn from a existent level of astir 55 gigawatts to 84 gigawatts successful the adjacent 2 years, according to probe from Goldman Sachs.

Proof of request has shown up successful concern assemblage earnings, arsenic companies similar Caterpillar, GE Vernova (GEV), and Honeywell (HON) person benefited from Big Tech's AI arms contention funded by seemingly near-limitless spending.

The industrials assemblage has gained astir 20% implicit the past year, outperforming the S&P 500's (^GSPC) 14.7% instrumentality by a steadfast margin.

Caterpillar's 4th fourth retail income successful its powerfulness procreation conception were 44% higher successful the 4th fourth of 2025 compared to the aforesaid 4th a twelvemonth prior. Its bid backlog grew by $11.3 cardinal 4th implicit 4th to deed a grounds precocious of $51.2 cardinal worthy of equipment, arsenic request for instrumentality similar earthy state turbines and energy transformers piled up.

The institution said it was expecting 2026 full-year superior expenditures of astir $3.5 billion, driven chiefly by capableness expansion.

AI's powerfulness and energy chokepoint was besides successful absorption for governmental and firm leaders astatine the 2026 World Economic Forum successful Davos, Switzerland, successful mid-January, wherever speech focused connected the soaring request for powerfulness and the tech industry's conflict to unafraid it.

In a speech astatine Davos, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said that the AI gyration volition necessitate "trillions of dollars" of spending connected what the chipmaking person called the “largest infrastructure build-out successful history.”