Joy Global (NASDAQ: JOYG) shares are trading higher after the company reported second-quarter profit of $72.1 million, or 66 cents per share. Excluding one-time items, the company earned 86 cents per share, beating analysts' estimates of 72 cents per share. JOYG also upped its fiscal 2008 earnings forecast to a range of $3.15 to $3.30, up from a previous forecast of $2.96 to $3.22. If you think that the stock won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on JOYG.

After hitting a one-year low of $42.10 in September, the stock hit a one-year high of $82.48 earlier this month. JOYG opened this morning at $82.17. So far today the stock has hit a low of $77.88 and a high of $82.75. As of 12:10, JOYG is trading at $80.47, up 2.59 (3.3%). The chart for JOYG looks bullish and steady.

For a bullish hedged play on this stock, I would consider a June bull-put credit spread below the $70 range. A bull-put credit spread is an options position that combines the purchase and sale of put options to hedge risk in case the stock doesn't do what you think but still leverage nice returns. For this particular trade, we will make a 7.5% return in just three weeks as long as JOYG is above $70 at June expiration. JOYG would have to fall by more than 12% before we would start to lose money. Learn more about this type of trade here.

JOYG hasn't been below $70 since early April and has shown support around $76 recently. This trade could be risky if the prices for commodities fall off in the coming weeks, but even if that happens, that position could be protected by support the stock might find from its 50-day moving average, which is currently around $73.

Brent Archer is an options analyst and writer at Investors Observer.

DISCLOSURE: Mr. Archer owns and/or controls diversified portfolios of long and short stock and option positions that may include holdings in companies he writes about. At publication time, Brent neither owns nor controls positions in JOYG.