Shares of farm equipment maker Deere & Company (NYSE: DE) received a kick in the teeth last week when JPMorgan Chase & Compnay (NYSE: JPM) reduced its rating on the company to neutral from overweight. JPMorgan was, in part, reacting to a U.S. Department of Agriculture forecast that corn inventories will increase even as demand falls off substantially.

Morgan thus predicted that corn prices are poised to fall, which will in turn threaten farmers' purchasing power. Farm equipment sales appear to have already peaked, the financial firm said.

The shares didn't exactly crash the day of the downgrade, but have steadily slipped and given up the rather impressive gains made during the first full week of trading this year.

When natural disasters happen, there are always some companies that can turn the circumstances in their favor. Recent downpours in the Midwest provided such an opportunity as they came not only with high damages for people in the area, but also with floods for crop production, causing even higher agricultural commodity prices. The rise in corn and soybeans prices could easily lead to an increased demand for seeds, agricultural equipment, and fertilizers. BusinessWeek suggests some big names to invest in that could offer us the advantages we are looking for.

One such company is Archer Daniels Midland (NYSE: ADM), which could also benefit from higher ethanol prices, after purchasing seven businesses in 2007. Bunge Limited (NYSE: BG) is also amid possible winners, having forecast better-than-expected fertilizer earnings. Shell eggs producer Cal-Maine Foods (NASDAQ: CALM) is also on the selected list; the company saw its shares climb 15% year to date, and has just revealed a new dividend payout policy.

Another important name is Mosaic Co. (NYSE: MOS), whose stock prices have surged 70% so far this year. BusinessWeek cites Mosaic as being able to benefit from higher prices for fertilizer and potash. Following the same logic, the article points out potash provider Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan (NYSE: POT) and fertilizer distributor CF Industries Holdings (NYSE: CF), which should be able to take advantage of the weak dollar and higher sales prices.

Analysts believe that Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) has kept its hand on the plow. The general analyst consensus indicates solid expectations that the company will continue to perform at or above expectations. According to AOL Money and Finance, analysts are giving indications that Deere is a buy. In defiance of today's market pull back, Deere & Co. shares have gained one half percent as of this writing.

Media sources are openly optimistic about Deere & Co., though actual commentary is sorely lacking. Barron"s did go far enough to cite that some strategic execution failures of Deere competitors have played nicely for the company. With the weakened dollar giving solid momentum to Deere's international growth focus, and Deere equipment systems showing robust independent sales, for the time being the company appears to be a relatively safe harbor for longer term investment dollars.

Year to date return on Deere is just above a negative 3%, but the 5 year return on this company is over 300%. The best earnings estimates that I can lay a hand on hover around $1.75 per share.

Gary Sattler is a freelance blogger. He does not knowingly hold investment positions in the companies mentioned in this blog post.

On January 16, 2008, a voluntary recall of approximately 5,400 John Deere Compact Utility Tractors was initiated by the Consumer Product Safety Commission in cooperation with Deere and Co. (NYSE: DE). The problem with the tractors is described as a forward drive pedal that can get stuck, creating a potential for loss of control and injury to people.

The recalled tractor's model number is 3203, and you may check the CPSC press release for specific serial numbers. It is suggested that consumers discontinue using these particular tractors and contact a John Deere dealer to schedule a free repair. You may reach Deere & Company at (800) 537-8233 between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. ET Monday through Friday and between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. ET Saturday. You are also invited to visit the company website at: www.johndeere.com.

TheStreet.com's Jim Cramer says not even the collapse of ethanol can touch the planting renaissance we're seeing.

The agriculture bull market had been linked to ethanol. Turns out that ethanol is only one piece of the puzzle. What we are seeing for everything from fertilizer to farm equipment to seeds is that there are so many uses and calls on crops that we are having a planting renaissance that hasn't been seen in years.

We have an amazing moment in ag: we are supply-constrained for everything. Fertilizer demand is far exceeding supply, so you get an Agrium (NYSE: AGU) (Cramer's Take) buying a UAP (NASDAQ: UAPH) (Cramer's Take) -- and Agrium goes up.

Fewer players, tighter supply, no new plants coming on to speak of -- this is an amazing moment.

Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) is getting a boost this morning from competitor CNH Global (NYSE: CNH), which announced Q3 earnings this morning. CNH's profit nearly doubled, lifted by strong operating margins. The company beat EPS estimates by 15% and shares were up almost 8% in early trading, bringing other farm equipment makers along for the ride. Investors will be expecting similarly good news from DE when it reports in late November. If you think that the company 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 DE.

DE stock has been gaining steadily all year, hitting a 52-week high of $157.30 earlier this month. Deere opened this morning at $147.73. So far today, the stock has hit a low of $147.01 and a high of $149.75. As of 10:55, DE is trading at $149.04, up $4.20 (2.9%). The chart for DE looks bullish and steady, while S&P gives the stock a neutral 3 STARS (out of 5) hold rating.

For a bullish hedged play on this stock, I would consider a December bull-put credit spread below the $115 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 5.3% return in just 2 months as long as DE is above $115 at December expiration. Deere would have to fall by more than 23% before we would start to lose money. Learn more about this type of trade here.

DE hasn't been below $115 since May and has shown support around $142 recently. This trade could be risky if the company's earnings (due out 11/21) disappoint, but even if that happens, this position could be protected by recent support between $115 and $120 where the stock bottomed in August, plus the stock's 200-day moving average, which is currently at $120 and rising.

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 DE or CNH.

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage

Tomorrow morning, Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) is going to be reporting its fiscal third quarter earnings before the market opens. Analysts are looking to see the company show earnings for $1.99 a share during the quarter.

When the company announces numbers tomorrow, it will have a chance to make it eight straight quarters of estimate-beating results. In fact, the last time that Deere was unable to beat analyst estimates was back in August 2005, when it failed to match estimates for its third quarter in 2005.

The company has been benefiting from a global increase in demand for its farm equipment, as more interest is being placed in the development of corn ethanol. This should definitely help the company continue to put up strong numbers for several quarters to come.

One analyst, Andrew Casey from Wachovia, has put out a bullish statement on the company, and told his clients to expect to see Deere come through with numbers above analyst estimates. He also went on to say that he expects a strong commodity market to result in higher cash receipts for the company for several years in the future.

A June 21 BloggingStocks blog post reported that media money mogul Jim Cramer pointed at John Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) and said "Deere good." My question is, where exactly was Jim Cramer on that company two weeks ago? Someone needs to point out to Cramer my old saying, "The first horse to the bucket gets the grain." While Mr. Cramer's lemmings are scurrying towards a peak already established, my herd is resting in the pasture belching oh so contentedly over Deere's recent new high. So now Cramer says Deere is a hot buy? What's wrong with this picture?

They say: The proof is in the pudding, so here's some pudding for you. On June 9, I made clear that Deere & Co. was buying a well-established and recognized Chinese tractor manufacturer. I'm guessing that's more than Cramer has told you. Deere is expanding its worldwide foot print. I told you so.

They also say: Nothing good ever comes easy, and I believe that to be true. So you may have cause to sit up and take notice when I tell you that Deere & Co announced a new product line because in my opinion almost anything new from John Deere & Co. is good. I told you that too!

On May 29, Cramer called Deere a pick and on June 13 Cramer called Deere a gainer, but I'm supposing that's all the in-depth information Cramer had for you. The plain truth of the matter is, if it's in-depth, up-to-the-minute information you seek, BloggingStocks has it for you and you won't have to watch us scream or yell or wear a diaper like some media stock pickers we know would ask you to suffer through.

Here's all the John Deere & Company insight BloggingStocks has brought to you!

Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) opened at $121.50. So far today the stock has hit a low of $121.32 and a high of $122.47. As of 10:25, DE is trading at $122.46, up $0.96 (0.8%).

DE has been climbing steadily over the past 10 months, hitting a new one-year high of $125.21 yesterday. Jim Cramer stated that he would aggressively buy DE right now based on some wrong assumptions in the market that have been holding the stock down. While investors had been expecting farm subsidy reforms to hurt the sector, those reforms don't look like they're coming any time soon. Recent technical indicators for DE have been bullish and steady, while S&P gives the stock a neutral 3 STARS (out of 5) hold rating.

For a bullish hedged play on this stock, I would consider a September bull-put credit spread below the $100 range. DE hasn't been below $100 since January and has shown support around $114 recently. This trade could be risky if Congress does end up enacting some farm reforms, but even if that happens, this position could be protected by the support the stock found just under $105 back in March, plus its 200-day moving average, which is currently at $100 and rising.

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 DE.

Boasting higher efficiency, versatility and power along with specially engineered operator comfort and control, John Deere & Company (NYSE: DE) announced on June 1, 2007 the debut of a completely new line of self propelled sprayers. The equipment line identified as "Series 30 Sprayers" boasts state of the art "integrated performance–enhancing technology which includes precision guidance, mapping and variable rate software." Additionally, as is the Deere standard, the "operator interface" aspects of the equipment has been given focused attention, meaning that ease of use, safety and comfort take these Deere machines well beyond the qualities of simply being useful.

The 30 Series Sprayers are sold and supported by John Deere Commercial Application Dealers and Application Support Dealers at 254 locations throughout the U.S. and Canada. Deere continues to show long term dedication to its clients and seeks to maintain its well deserved image of stellar customer service.

For further information regarding John Deere & Co. self propelled sprayers you may visit the company's website where you can also get up-to-date investor information on the company.

Gary E. Sattler holds no financial interest in and is not compensated by John Deere & Co.

This morning Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) reported its second fiscal quarter earnings and the company easily beat analyst estimates. Led by strong international sales, the company earned $2.72 per share which were well above the $2.41 per share estimates that analysts had expected.

Sales for the quarter were a strong $6.68 billion which also past analyst estimates which had been for $6.46 billion.

This strong quarter should really come as no surprise. With the spike in commodities over recent months it is only logical that farmer equipment stocks are going to remain strong.

But what is surprising is where the company showed its strength. Equipment sales in the US and Canada were actually down slightly (3% for the quarter and 4% year to date), but international sales skyrocketed. Sales outside the US and Canada rose by 22% which helped give the company an overall increase of around 5% in total sales.

Traders are buying up the stock in the premarket, pushing shares up 1.5% to $122.50 up $1.84. It will be interesting to see how well the news of the US and Canadian sales figures is digested by Wall Street. I wouldn't be surprised to hear the company discuss the impact of poor weather through the first half of April had on these sales. Yesterday, while liveblogging Home Depot's first quarter conference call we heard a lot of discussion about April weather impacting sales, and this could be a theme that we continue to hear today.

Deere & Co. will be hosting its conference call this morning starting at 10:00 AM EDT, and BloggingStocks will be covering the call in its entirety. So be sure to check back around 10 for complete coverage and up to the minute discussion on the company's call.

Michael Fowlkes has worked as a stock trader for seven years and spent the last two years working as an analyst for the online investment advisory service Investor'sObserver.

Just call Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) the Rodney Dangerfield of stocks.

For those younger investors & readers who don't recognize the reference, the late Dangerfield [1921-2004] was a stand-up comedian who built a career by lamenting that, "I tell you I get no respect."

Likewise, Caterpillar gets no respect. Despite solid growth and impressive earnings for more than 3 years, Wall Street has pummeled the stock, taking shares down from about $82 in May 2006 to below $60. This was done on projections that the global economic slowdown would hurt CAT, a maker of farm and construction machinery.

On Friday, however, CAT tried to reverse that sentiment by reporting Q4 EPS of $1.32, 2 cents below the Reuters consensus estimate of $1.34. CAT also posted Q4 revenue of $11 billion, well above the consensus estimate of $10.3 billion.

Prior to Friday, Wall Street had treated CAT the way Dangerfield felt he was treated: rudely - - taking CAT shares down despite repeated decent-to-good news reports and operational accomplishments.

John Deere / Deere & Company (NYSE: DE) is shaping a nice outlook for 2007. First consider their recently announced quarterly dividend increase from .39 cents to .44 cents a share. Then factor in an equipment contract to build 300 TRAM units like the one pictured above for an estimated total of $47 million (as much as $243 million if the Department of Defense wants all the bells and whistles). Deere and Co. is right on track for a banner year in 2007.

For the year 2007, Deere projects that equipment production and sales shall remain firm and steady with an overall increase of as much as 4%. They continue to advance and upgrade their manufacturing stream in an effort to become more efficient and accomplish quicker reaction times to fluctuating production demands. Given the fact that the above mentioned TRAM contract is for equipment manufactured by their construction and forestry division which was previously projected to be down in production by 5% in 2007, Deere's actual increase in production could become somewhat greater than 4%.

John Deere Capital Corporation, Deere's credit subsidiary, is expected to be their substantial performer in the coming year. For fiscal year 2006 DOCC reports net income of approximately $290 million. Deere projects net income in the range of $340 million for 2007 from their credit operations and cites portfolio growth as the main reason that should happen. They do make clear that it is their intent to continually reinvest that profit into creating continued new growth.

Some analysts are saying that Deere is being conservative in its projections for next year.

It would be easy for General Electric shareholders to miss the good news in today's Wall Street Journal. But tucked near the end of a story with the ominous headline, "Dollar's Slide Could Roil Stocks," (subscription required) was a mention of how the falling dollar could be a positive for GE.

Currency moves are always a mixed bag for businesses -- one reason they are so hard for investors to interpret. On the one hand, the dollar's slide makes foreign products more expensive. That's bad news for companies that rely on imports -- like retailers. For the economy, a falling dollar can lead to two major problems --  higher interest rates and rising inflation (as import prices rise).

But a falling dollar makes U.S. exports cheaper, which can increase the competitiveness of U.S. goods both at home and overseas. As a major exporter, General Electric, along with Caterpillar and  John Deere, is an "obvious beneficiary" of the dollar's recent slump, the Journal notes.