Caterpillar (CAT) Ascends While Market Falls: Some Facts to Note

Caterpillar (CAT) closed the latest trading day at $396.64, indicating a +0.11% change from the previous session's end. This move outpaced the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.21%. Meanwhile, the Dow experienced a drop of 0.14%, and the technology-dominated Nasdaq saw a decrease of 0.05%.Heading into today, shares of the construction equipment company had gained 18.27% over the past month, outpacing the Industrial Products sector's gain of 8.18% and the S&P 500's gain of 5.94% in that time.The investment community will be paying close attention to the earnings performance of Caterpillar in its upcoming release. In that report, analysts expect Caterpillar to post earnings of $5.36 per share. This would mark a year-over-year decline of 2.9%. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $16.36 billion, down 2.69% from the year-ago period.For the annual period, the Zacks Consensus Estimates anticipate earnings of $21.91 per share and a revenue of $65.59 billion, signifying shifts of +3.3% and -2.19%, respectively, from the last year.It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for Caterpillar. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.Our research suggests that these changes in estimates have a direct relationship with upcoming stock price performance. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.The Zacks Rank system, running from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), holds an admirable track record of superior performance, independently audited, with #1 stocks contributing an average annual return of +25% since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.15% higher within the past month. Right now, Caterpillar possesses a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).In terms of valuation, Caterpillar is currently trading at a Forward P/E ratio of 18.08. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 10.19, so one might conclude that Caterpillar is trading at a premium comparatively.Investors should also note that CAT has a PEG ratio of 1.85 right now. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. Manufacturing - Construction and Mining stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 6.77 based on yesterday's closing prices.The Manufacturing - Construction and Mining industry is part of the Industrial Products sector. With its current Zacks Industry Rank of 72, this industry ranks in the top 29% of all industries, numbering over 250.The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.Ensure to harness Zacks.com to stay updated with all these stock-shifting metrics, among others, in the next trading sessions.Zacks' Research Chief Names "Stock Most Likely to Double"Our team of experts has just released the 5 stocks with the greatest probability of gaining +100% or more in the coming months. Of those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian highlights the one stock set to climb highest.This top pick is among the most innovative financial firms. With a fast-growing customer base (already 50+ million) and a diverse set of cutting edge solutions, this stock is poised for big gains. Of course, all our elite picks aren’t winners but this one could far surpass earlier Zacks’ Stocks Set to Double like Nano-X Imaging which shot up +129.6% in little more than 9 months.Free: See Our Top Stock And 4 Runners UpWant 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 ReportTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks