Caterpillar Inc (CAT) — Cash Flow Quality Index
Caterpillar Inc (CAT) has a Cash Flow Quality Index of 1.50x as of December 2025. Operating cash flow of $3.59 Billion exceeds net income of $2.40 Billion, indicating high earnings quality where cash backs reported profits. Explore Caterpillar Inc strategic investment ratio to see how much of total assets are deployed in long-term investments.
Cash Flow Quality Index
Operating Cash Flow
Net Income
Data as of
Caterpillar Inc Cash Flow Quality Index (1989–2025)
Historical Cash Flow Quality Index for Caterpillar Inc across 34 annual periods. Values consistently above 1.0x indicate high-quality earnings. Check Caterpillar Inc (CAT) tangible net worth to evaluate the tangible quality of the company's equity base.
Annual Cash Flow Quality Index for Caterpillar Inc (1989–2025)
Year-by-year earnings quality comparison for Caterpillar Inc. For live market cap and the full company financial profile, see market cap of Caterpillar Inc.
| Year | Quality Index | Operating CF (USD) | Net Income | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1.32x | $11.74 Billion | $8.88 Billion | ▲ +18.5% |
| 2024 | 1.12x | $12.04 Billion | $10.79 Billion | ▼ -10.5% |
| 2023 | 1.25x | $12.88 Billion | $10.33 Billion | ▲ +7.7% |
| 2022 | 1.16x | $7.77 Billion | $6.70 Billion | ▲ +4.5% |
| 2021 | 1.11x | $7.20 Billion | $6.49 Billion | ▼ -47.4% |
| 2020 | 2.11x | $6.33 Billion | $3.00 Billion | ▲ +85.8% |
| 2019 | 1.13x | $6.91 Billion | $6.09 Billion | ▲ +6.3% |
| 2018 | 1.07x | $6.56 Billion | $6.15 Billion | ▼ -85.8% |
| 2017 | 7.52x | $5.71 Billion | $759.00 Million | ▲ +183.1% |
| 2015 | 2.66x | $6.70 Billion | $2.52 Billion | ▼ -18.7% |
| 2014 | 3.26x | $8.06 Billion | $2.47 Billion | ▲ +21.8% |
| 2013 | 2.68x | $10.19 Billion | $3.80 Billion | ▲ +195.8% |
| 2012 | 0.91x | $5.18 Billion | $5.72 Billion | ▼ -35.1% |
| 2011 | 1.40x | $6.96 Billion | $4.98 Billion | ▼ -23.1% |
| 2010 | 1.82x | $5.01 Billion | $2.76 Billion | ▼ -76.9% |
| 2009 | 7.86x | $6.50 Billion | $827.00 Million | ▲ +503.0% |
| 2008 | 1.30x | $4.67 Billion | $3.58 Billion | ▼ -41.4% |
| 2007 | 2.22x | $7.96 Billion | $3.58 Billion | ▲ +35.6% |
| 2006 | 1.64x | $5.80 Billion | $3.54 Billion | ▲ +50.3% |
| 2005 | 1.09x | $3.11 Billion | $2.85 Billion | ▲ +155.6% |
| 2004 | -1.96x | $-3.99 Billion | $2.04 Billion | ▲ +61.6% |
| 2003 | -5.11x | $-5.61 Billion | $1.10 Billion | ▼ -2.8% |
| 2002 | -4.96x | $-3.96 Billion | $798.00 Million | ▼ -301.1% |
| 2001 | 2.47x | $1.99 Billion | $805.00 Million | ▲ +26.2% |
| 2000 | 1.96x | $2.06 Billion | $1.05 Billion | ▼ -28.6% |
| 1999 | 2.74x | $2.59 Billion | $946.00 Million | ▲ +133.0% |
| 1998 | 1.18x | $1.78 Billion | $1.51 Billion | ▼ -6.6% |
| 1997 | 1.26x | $2.10 Billion | $1.67 Billion | ▼ -3.9% |
| 1996 | 1.31x | $1.78 Billion | $1.36 Billion | ▼ -32.1% |
| 1995 | 1.93x | $2.19 Billion | $1.14 Billion | ▲ +4.8% |
| 1994 | 1.84x | $1.76 Billion | $955.00 Million | ▼ -10.8% |
| 1993 | 2.06x | $1.41 Billion | $681.00 Million | ▼ -47.2% |
| 1990 | 3.90x | $820.00 Million | $210.00 Million | ▲ +114.0% |
| 1989 | 1.82x | $907.00 Million | $497.00 Million | — |