Terex (NYSE: TEX) is recently trading at $42.50 in pre-open trading, below its close of $47.32. TEX lowered 2008 EPS view to $6.35-$6.65 from $6.85-$7.15. TEX overall option implied volatility of 50 is near its 26-week average according to Track Data, according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional price movement.

Agco (NYSE: AG), global manufacturer of agricultural and construction equipment, closed at $56.10. AG overall option implied volatility of 49 is near its 26-week average, suggesting non-directional price movement.

Deere (NYSE: DE) closed at $66.53. DE overall option implied volatility of 40 is near its 26-week average according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional price movement.

CNH Global (NYSE: CNH), an agricultural and construction equipment manufacturer, closed at $35.17. CNH overall option implied volatility of 54 is near its 26-week average, suggesting non-directional price movement.

Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) closed at $67.73. CAT October option implied volatility of 32 is near its 26-week average according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional price movement.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

Option Update: Volatility flat for heavy earth movers; CAT, DE, TEX ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 04 Sep 2008 09:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• JP Morgan downgraded Sunoco (NYSE: SUN) to Underweight from Neutral citing expected margin pressure due to high leverage to sweet crude. Goldman also downgraded shares of Sunoco to Neutral from Buy.
  
• Deutsche Bank downgraded shares of Ryanair (NASDAQ: RYAAY) to Sell from Hold as they believe the European airlines sector will trade well below book value until the companies deal with higher oil prices.
  
• UBS cut HSBC (NYSE: HBC) to Neutral from Buy to reflect the potential for higher losses at the company's household unit and weak performance at its U.S. bank.

• Broadpoint lowered MTS Medication (NYSE: MPP) to Neutral from Strong Buy.
  
• HSBC cut Southern Peru Copper (NYSE: PCU) to Neutral from Overweight.
  
• Goldman downgraded CNH Global (NYSE: CNH) to Neutral from Buy and PetroChina (PTR) to Sell from Buy.

Analyst downgrades: SUN, RYAAY, HBC, MPP, PCU, CNH and HBC originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 06 May 2008 11:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Goldman Sachs upped Agco (NYSE:AG) to "buy" from "neutral" and downgraded CNH Global (NYSE:CNH) from "buy" to "neutral" according to MarketWatch.

UBS downgraded HSBC (NYSE:HBC) to "neutral" to "buy" according to Briefing.com. The news service also reports that Morgan Stanley downgraded Valero (NYSE:VLO) to "neutral" from "overweight".

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Early analyst calls (HBC) (VLO) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 06 May 2008 07:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The earnings crunch continues to roll along, and here are a some highlights of this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET) beat expectations and raised its full-year guidance.
• Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) beat estimates by a penny and offered a poor outlook.
• American Express Co. (NYSE: AXP) delivered a positive surprise, with profits up 10%.
• Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) beat estimates, but revenue was flat.
• Anheuser-Busch Cos. (NYSE: BUD) beat expectations on strength of international sales and partner brands.
• Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) blew past expectations. See our conference call live blog.
• Avery Dennison Corp.'s (NYSE: AVY) net sales up, EPS down, both due to the Paxar acquisition.
• Baidu.com Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU) beat expectations, but wariness about its growth potential lingers.
• Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) beat expectations but lowered its guidance.
• Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) beat expectations on the strength of Plavix sales.
• CNH Global's (NYSE: CNH) profit nearly doubled, beating estimates by 15%.
• Coach Inc. (NYSE: COH) beat estimates by a penny, but offered a conservative outlook for the holidays.
• Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) met EPS expectations but cut its cash flow forecast.
• Countrywide Financial Corp. (NYSE: CFC) reported a $1.2 billion loss, but predicts a profit in the next quarter.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: Apple (AAPL), Merrill Lynch (MER), UAL (UAUA), and many others

Earnings highlights: Apple (AAPL), Merrill Lynch (MER), UAL (UAUA), and many others originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 27 Oct 2007 11:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Deere & Co. Q2 earnings preview

Deere & Co. Q2 earnings preview originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 14 May 2007 14:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

While investors and pundits debate the impact of ethanol on our long-term energy problems, one thing is clear according to Ivan Martchev -- the popularity of ethanol is having a "huge impact" on agribusinesses.

The editor of Vital Resource Investor explains, "Whether ethanol makes economic sense is less irrelevant. It is having an effect on farming." Indeed, he believes one of the best ways for investors to play the popularity of ethanol is to focus on farming equipment.

Within this market, he notes that the obvious choice for investors is industry leader Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE). However, he cautions that the stock already reflects investor optimism.

In addition, he notes, "The stock recently traded at $114, and many individual investors dislike buying triple-digit stocks." Therefore, he notes, he looked for a "worthy adversary to Deere" and found Case New Holland, whose name was recently shortened to CNH Global NV (NYSE: CNH).

The advisor calls CNH a restructuring story. He notes that the company is majority owned by Fiat, which is itself recovering from a "dire situation" two years ago.

Continue reading CNH: A farming alternative to Deere

CNH: A farming alternative to Deere originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 06 May 2007 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Ever wonder what became of agricultural equipment names like Case, Ford, International Harvester and New Holland? They are all part of the heritage of one of the biggest heavy equipment makers around.

CNH Global NV (NYSE: CNH) is a world class manufacturer of agricultural and construction equipment, ranking second to Deere (NYSE: DE) in the farm category and third to Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) and Komatsu in the building line. Products include wide varieties of tractors, combine harvesters, seeding and planting equipment, sprayers, excavators, graders, bulldozers, backhoe loaders and skid steer loaders. A financial services unit assists clients with the purchase, or lease of equipment. The firm, a majority-owned subsidiary of Fiat S.p.A. (NYSE: FIA), is supported by about 11,500 dealers in 160 countries.

Continue reading CNH Global: Want that combine harvester with or without AC?

CNH Global: Want that combine harvester with or without AC? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 01 May 2007 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Deere lifted by competitor's earnings originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 23 Apr 2007 11:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.