During the Gold Rush, legend had it that the best way to get rich wasn’t by panning for gold, but by selling “picks and shovels” to the miners. And there’s no better example of that strategy in action today than at Caterpillar. There, the maker of massive mining and earthmoving equipment and iconic yellow construction site gear is capitalizing on the AI boom and seeing record stock highs and solid revenue growth.
Shares of the company have climbed to record levels in recent weeks, pushing its market capitalization sharply higher—from $270 billion at the end of 2025 to approximately $364 billion as of Feb. 13, 2026. The stock, which has more than doubled over the past 12 months to an all-time high of $775, has vastly outperformed such tech behemoths as Apple (up 8%) and Microsoft (up about 1%) during that time period. And investors are betting that Caterpillar’s growing exposure to data centers, energy infrastructure, and AI-related demand hasn’t peaked yet. In fact, over the past 12 months, Caterpillar has ranked as the No. 1 best performer in the Dow.
