Caterpillar (CAT) Q4 2024 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Record adjusted profit per share for 2024 at $21.90, up 3% year-over-year, with adjusted operating profit margin of 20.7% exceeding the top of the target range.

• Full-year sales and revenues were $64.8 billion, with Q4 sales and revenues at $16.2 billion, both down 3% and 5% year-over-year, respectively.

• Robust ME&T free cash flow of $9.4 billion, near the top of the target range, enabled $10.3 billion returned to shareholders via dividends and share repurchases.

• Results benefited from diverse end markets, strong execution, and record services revenue of $24 billion.

• Strong operating cash flow of $12.0 billion and enterprise cash balance at $6.9 billion at year-end.

Financial highlights

• Q4 adjusted profit per share was $5.14; adjusted operating profit margin was 18.3%.

• Q4 operating profit was $2.924 billion, down 7–8% year-over-year; Q4 profit per share was $5.78, with adjusted profit per share down 2% year-over-year.

• Backlog increased by $2.5 billion year-over-year to $30 billion.

• Financial Products revenues rose 4% to $1.024 billion, but segment profit fell 29% due to equity securities and higher credit loss provisions.

• Q4 effective tax rate was 14.3% (annual rate excluding discrete items: 22.2%).

Outlook and guidance

• 2025 sales and revenues expected to be slightly lower than 2024, with unfavorable price realization accounting for about a 1% decrease.

• Adjusted operating profit margin and ME&T free cash flow for 2025 expected in the top half of target ranges.

• Services revenues projected to grow across all segments in 2025.

• 2025 capital expenditures anticipated at $2.5 billion; restructuring costs expected at $150M–$200M.

• Q1 2025 sales and margins anticipated to be lower year-over-year due to lower dealer inventory build and unfavorable price realization, with improvement expected in the second half.