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Several companies in different parts of the outdoor power equipment marketplace reported Q3 2026 financial results in the last couple of weeks. We are presenting them together here with brief individual recaps.

Do the reports show any trends?

• 1. Manufacturers of power tools (like those made by Stanley Black & Decker) and compact construction equipment (like Caterpillar or Bobcat products) are calling out growth opportunities from data center construction in particular.
• 2. Outdoor equipment paints a less rosy picture, at least for companies mentioned here. Stanley releasing the Hustler brand and moving to a licensing model for gas walk-behinds says something.
• 3. Tariff refunds continue to boost company margins at Caterpillar and Bobcat in particular, and that can’t last long.
• 4. Cost inflation and weak residential demand squeezed margins at Husqvarna, though North American consumers seem to continue spending which has helped Husqvarna remain positive.

Stanley Black & Decker (Q3, reported Nov 4)

Stanley Black & Decker reported its net sales were $3.7 billion; that’s up 4% organically. Volume rose 6%, coming mainly from U.S. retail and commercial and industrial channels in Tools & Outdoor. North America grew 6% organically, Europe 1%, and Rest of World fell 1%. The previously announced shift to a licensing model for gas walk-behind outdoor products cut that segment’s reported sales by 2 points.

In regard to the company’s recent sale of Excel and the Hustler brand of mowers, one analyst asked if the company has other action plans for its portfolio of outdoor-focused equipment, Chris Nelson, president and CEO, said:

“I’d say that we’re kind of at the end of the major transformational cycle that we were in. Certainly, there could be pruning opportunities, but they’d be more around the edges with particular product lines or categories, if anything. We like the Cub Cadet brand, and we feel that our presence in the market as it relates to large-format ride-on mowers is well-represented. We like that brand, and we like the innovation that it brings with it. With what we’re doing on handheld, particularly with the Dewalt and Craftsman brands, we feel like we’re well-positioned and our portfolio in outdoor is well-constructed at this point.”

Husqvarna Group (Q3, reported Oct 21)

Husqvarna Group reported its net sales fell 2% to SEK 9,012m (NOTE, 1 SEK is currently worth about $0.10 USD), which was a 5% organic decline once a 3% currency tailwind is removed. The Forest & Garden division fell 10% organically, which the manufacturer attributed largely to a drought across much of Europe and weak consumer demand in Germany and France. Construction was flat, and the company’s Gardena grew 8% on strong sales of watering-related products (pretty important in a drought).

North America grew in all three divisions, and the US became the largest market for professional robotics, driven by golf. On a global scale, especially with residential products, Husqvarna called it a difficult quarter for robotic mower sales because of weather, competition and high channel inventories in Europe.

Regarding the company’s outlook, it gave no numeric guidance, though CEO Glen Instone provided this statement along with the company’s financial report: “Our transformative cost savings program remains on track to deliver SEK 3bn in gross savings by the end of 2028. Year-to-date savings reached approximately SEK 935m, including around SEK 305m in the third quarter, driven mainly by sourcing activities and personnel reductions.”

He added that Husqvarna is responding to today’s challenging economy with “targeted price increases, supply chain actions and product cost optimization,” and that “near-term headwinds are expected to remain.”

Caterpillar (Q3, reported Oct 29)

Sales and revenues rose 17% to $20.7 billion, the company’s highest quarterly sales ever. The revenue gains came mostly through sales volume but pricing added $663 million to the total. Operating profit rose 38% with a part of that ($128 million) coming through tariff recoveries.

Caterpillar saw growth in all its categories (Power & Energy, Resource Industries and Construction), with Construction sales up 23% in North America alone. It did say that higher freight margins pulled back some of those gains.

I usually leave the Wall-Street-focused info and reporting out of my financial reports, but the response of investor’s following Caterpillar’s record revenues was interesting to me.

Caterpillar was the best-performing stock in the Dow Jones much of this year, according to Yahoo Finance calculations, and finished June up 86%, far ahead of any other member.

But with conflicting outlooks about AI data centers, and Caterpillar’s reported record backlog of about $78 billion, the equipment maker saw investors turn away. The stock price began falling on the day of the company’s recent financial reporting and it has continued to drop, wiping out the gains it has made in 2026 calendar year. Caterpillar is on track for its worst day since March 2020, two weeks before stocks hit their pandemic lows, and its lowest close since January.

Todd Sohn, managing director and chief ETF strategist at Baird Strategas, found that investors have been pulling cash from funds that hold economically sensitive stocks like Caterpillar and moving it into safer areas such as healthcare and utilities, according to Yahoo Finance reporting.

SiteOne Landscape Supply (Q3, reported Oct 28)

SiteOne continues to grow through acquisition. The supplier reported its net sales rose 3% to $1.29 billion, but organic daily sales fell 1%. Pricing rose 4%, acquisitions added 3%, and volume was soft.

The company’s management said new residential and repair-and-upgrade demand as declining, while maintenance and new commercial construction are more resilient. SiteOne said that a planned fourth-quarter workforce reduction and branch consolidation will cost about $6 to $8 million. Company management said these actions will help prepare it for continued challenging demand in 2027 while supporting progress toward its 2030.

AGCO (Q3, reported Oct 29)

AGCO, parent company of Massey Ferguson, Fendt and other tractors, reported its sales in North America rose 34.8% and Asia/Pacific/Africa rose 13.8%, but overall its net sales fell 8.6% to $2.26 billion. Europe/Middle East dropped 19.1%, with Germany, France, Italy and Spain the weakest. Latin America fell 15.4%.

The CEO called this the weakest global industry demand in more than a decade. Nine-month North American tractor retail sales are down 9%, Brazil tractors are down 17%, and Western Europe tractors fell 9% in Q3 alone. The 2026 sales outlook was cut to $9.8–10.0B, and adjusted operating margin is now about 7.0%. Management expects industry demand to stay challenged through year-end and is leaning on precision-ag technology and cost control.

Bobcat (Doosan Bobcat, Q3, reported Oct 29)

Doosan Bobcat reported revenue for the quarter at $1.73 billion, up 13%, with operating profit up 22%. Compact equipment sales led the growth with revenue up 15%, and industrial vehicles rose 8%. Portable power rose 5%. North America, its largest market, grew 15%. Management credited shipments deferred from Q2 and rising demand from rental companies.