In the latest trading session, Caterpillar (CAT) closed at $228.89, marking a -1.54% move from the previous day. This change lagged the S&P 500's 0.92% loss on the day.Heading into today, shares of the construction equipment company had gained 4.3% over the past month, outpacing the Industrial Products sector's gain of 3.23% and lagging the S&P 500's gain of 6.83% in that time.Wall Street will be looking for positivity from CAT as it approaches its next earnings report date. This is expected to be April 29, 2021. In that report, analysts expect CAT to post earnings of $1.93 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 20.63%. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $11.05 billion, up 3.86% from the year-ago period.Looking at the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $8.25 per share and revenue of $46.62 billion. These totals would mark changes of +25.76% and +11.68%, respectively, from last year.It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for CAT. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 2.16% higher within the past month. CAT is holding a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) right now.Valuation is also important, so investors should note that CAT has a Forward P/E ratio of 27.6 right now. This represents a premium compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 21.83.It is also worth noting that CAT currently has a PEG ratio of 2.3. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. CAT's industry had an average PEG ratio of 1.72 as of yesterday's close.The Manufacturing - Construction and Mining industry is part of the Industrial Products sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 22, putting it in the top 9% of all 250+ industries.The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.You can find more information on all of these metrics, and much more, on Zacks.com.Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Caterpillar Inc. (CAT): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here.