What If You Invested $1,000 in Caterpillar (CAT)?
Enter any amount and start date. We use historical prices to show your hypothetical return.
Caterpillar
CAT
Historical extremes
Maximum profit (buy at all-time low, sell at peak), maximum drawdown (peak to trough), and total return from IPO to current price.
Max profit
+214114.66% (2,142 times)
- Buy
- Jun 25, 1962
- $0.36
- Sell
- Feb 11, 2026
- $775
Buying CAT at the all-time low and selling at the peak would have turned $1,000 into $2,142,146.58.
Max drawdown
-73.43% (fell to 27% of peak)
- Peak
- Jul 19, 2007
- $54.2
- Trough
- Mar 2, 2009
- $14.4
The worst decline for CAT was -73.43% (fell to 27% of peak) from peak to trough.
IPO to current
+150618.27% (1,507 times)
- IPO
- Jan 2, 1962
- $0.46
- Current
- Mar 16, 2026
- $699.78
A $1,000 investment in CAT at IPO would be worth $1,507,182.67 today.
Dollar amounts based on selected investment ($1,000)
Frequently asked questions
What is Caterpillar (CAT) stock's all-time high and all-time low?
- Caterpillar (CAT) stock's all-time low was $0.36 on Jun 25, 1962. The all-time high was $775 on Feb 11, 2026.
What if you invested $1,000 in Caterpillar (CAT) stock at the all-time low?
- Buying Caterpillar (CAT) stock at the all-time low ($0.36 on Jun 25, 1962) and selling at the peak ($775 on Feb 11, 2026) would have turned $1,000 into $2,142,146.58. Historical return: +214114.66% (2,142 times).
What are Caterpillar (CAT)'s best buy and sell dates for maximum profit?
- The best buy date for Caterpillar (CAT) stock was Jun 25, 1962 (all-time low at $0.36). The best sell date was Feb 11, 2026 at $775. This investment would have returned +214114.66% (2,142 times).
What was Caterpillar (CAT) stock's maximum drawdown?
- Caterpillar (CAT) stock's worst decline was -73.43% (fell to 27% of peak) from peak to trough. Peak: $54.2 on Jul 19, 2007. Trough: $14.4 on Mar 2, 2009. A $1,000 investment at the peak would have been worth $265.71 at the trough.
What if you bought Caterpillar (CAT) stock at IPO?
- A $1,000 investment in Caterpillar (CAT) stock at IPO ($0.46 on Jan 2, 1962) would be worth $1,507,182.67 today. Historical return: +150618.27% (1,507 times). Current stock price: $699.78 as of Mar 16, 2026.
What if you invested $1,000 in Caterpillar (CAT) 5 years ago?
- A $1,000 investment in Caterpillar (CAT) stock 5 years ago ($207.02 on Mar 16, 2021) would be worth $3,380.3 today. Historical return: +238.03% (3.38 times). Current stock price: $699.78 as of Mar 16, 2026.
What if you invested $1,000 in Caterpillar (CAT) 10 years ago?
- A $1,000 investment in Caterpillar (CAT) stock 10 years ago ($58.91 on Mar 16, 2016) would be worth $11,878.07 today. Historical return: +1087.81% (11.9 times). Current stock price: $699.78 as of Mar 16, 2026.
What if you invested $1,000 in Caterpillar (CAT) 20 years ago?
- A $1,000 investment in Caterpillar (CAT) stock 20 years ago ($45.5 on Mar 16, 2006) would be worth $15,379.14 today. Historical return: +1437.91% (15.4 times). Current stock price: $699.78 as of Mar 16, 2026.
About this data
- How does the investment calculator work?
- Enter an investment amount and a start date. We use historical stock prices to calculate how many shares you would have bought, then apply the current price to show your hypothetical portfolio value and return.
- What are Historical extremes?
- Max profit: buy at all-time low, sell at the highest price after. Max drawdown: the largest peak-to-trough decline in price. IPO to current: total return from IPO date to the latest price.
- What is Max drawdown?
- Maximum drawdown is the largest peak-to-trough decline in price. It shows the worst drop from any prior high to a subsequent low. Peak and Trough are the dates and prices at which this decline occurred.
- Does this include dividends?
- The calculator uses adjusted closing prices when available, which account for stock splits and dividends. For the most accurate results, we recommend using data that includes dividend adjustments.
- Where does the price data come from?
- Historical prices are from Yahoo Finance, adjusted for stock splits and dividends. We use adjusted close for all calculations.
- How are the dollar amounts in the cards calculated?
- The dollar amounts in Historical extremes use the investment amount you select in the calculator above (e.g. $1,000). They show what your investment would have been worth at the Buy/Peak/IPO date versus the Sell/Trough/Current date.
- What date range can I use?
- The available date range depends on our historical price data for CAT. You can select any date between our first and most recent data point.