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
Piper Jaffray downgraded Washington Mutual (NYSE:WM) to "sell" from "neutral", according toBriefing.com. The news service also reports that Citigroup cut VMWare (NYSE:VMW) to "hold" from "buy" and cut its price target to $33 from $52.
Deutsche Bank downgraded TRW (NYSE:TRW) to "hold" from "buy", according toMarketWatch.
Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan according to 24/7 Wall St. The financial website also reports Target Corp. (NYSE:TGT) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Hank Paulson led the charge this morning talking about the need and credibility of the GSE's. Oil was up for a while but after Tropical Storm Dolly headed further south than the oil and gas infrastructure that locked in heavy oil selling. The major focus continues to be earnings and financial stocks in particular. Below are today's unofficial closing bell levels: DJIA 11601.60 (+134.26) S&P500 1276.80 (+16.80) NASDAQ 2303.96 (+24.43) 10YR T-Note 4.097 (+0.03%) 52-Week Lows Top Analyst Calls
American Express Company (NYSE: AXP) was one of the more poor financial stocks today after the company choked on earnings last night. It is also facing deteriorating business despite it being thought of as the highest quality credit card around. Shares were down 9.2% at $37.13 in today's final minutes.
Town Bankruptcy Bad Sign for Other Towns The mortgage crisis, the limping economy and a recent bankruptcy filing by Vallejo - the first municipality to do so since Desert Hot Springs, Calif., in 2001 - have hobbled this town of 120,000. Vallejo's closely watched Chapter 9 bankruptcy filing in federal court in Sacramento may be a warning sign of dangers that could befall other cash-strapped municipalities. Economy hobbles Calif. town - USATODAY.com 10 Funds Suffering the Biggest Exoduses Which mutual funds are seeing the biggest outflows in 2008? They include some very well-known popular funds like Fidelity Low-Priced Stock, American Funds Investment Company of America and the Legg Mason Value funds. The 10 Funds Suffering the Biggest Exoduses
Stocks futures are lower Tuesday morning, indicating U.S. stock markets will start on a down note following weak outlooks and disappointing financial results from several companies including Apple and American Express. With oil steady and no economic data out today, Wall Street will focus on earnings.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) reported after the close Monday a record quarter that beat analyst estimates, posting a 31% surge in earnings. Mac and iPod sales satisfied investors, while iPhone sales were somewhat on the lighter side. What concerned investors most was the very weak guidance Apple gave, which was weak even by Apple's standards of lowballing. Other issues included margin squeeze and Jobs health. Apple shares were 10% lower in Frankfurt and premarket trading. American Express (NYSE: AXP), said late Monday its second-quarter results fell 38% due to the weakening economy. The company, which missed projections, caters to the more affluent who have good credit, and yet even this company felt the pains from the slowing economy. AmEx earned 56 cents per share compared to estimates of 83 cents per share. The company's stock tumbled AXP shares are down over 12% in premarket trading.
Also reporting Monday after the close were Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE: MRK), Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN) and SanDisk (NASDAQ: SNDK). MRK shares are down over 6.6% in premarket trading as the company said it would stop give guidance of results. TXN shares are also declining over 10.5% in premarket trading after it gave a disappointing forecast. SNDK shares are plunging over 16% in premarket trading after it swung to a Q2 loss, missing analyst estimates.
This morning we'll have another wave of earnings, and already started were DuPont and Wachovia.
Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) recently down $5.80 to $166.04:
AAPL is scheduled to report Q3 EPS on July 21. AAPL call option volume of 140,446 contracts compared to put volume of 143,734 contracts. AAPL August option implied volatility of 54 was above its 26-week average of 49 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.
Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) recently down 73 cents to $71.10:
CAT iss scheduled to report Q2 on July 22. CAT August option implied volatility of 41 was above its 26-week average of 33, suggesting larger price movement.
Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com
I know it doesn't matter at all. Right now we are so stuck on the banking problems and on the companies bleeding from higher energy prices that nobody cares about all of this cash, which will be used to shrink equity. They won't care because the banks, brokers and homebuilders, and the hobbled companies that use oil, have to issue so much equity that you can't see the effect of the equity shrinkage. But it will eventually matter. It has to matter that Deere has taken out 10% of its stock in the last four years. It does matter that Black & Decker (NYSE: BDK) (Cramer's Take) has eliminated almost 20% of its equity. Emerson's taken out 5%, same with Boeing (NYSE: BA) (Cramer's Take). There's just a huge amount of equity being shrunk.
American International Group (NYSE: AIG) shareholders -- former AIG director, Eli Broad, and two fund managers , who together control about 4% -- are asking for changes to the management and board of the world's largest insurer, which has been struggling with the fallout of the subprime mortgage mess.
Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) said it will spend $1 billion over the next two years to expand capacity in five of its Illinois factories, and will shift production at some of its plants to address the demand for machines used mostly in mining and large infrastructure projects. Also, CAT and Navistar International Corp. (NASDAQ: NAVZ) will begin cooperating to pursue new on-highway truck business and cooperate on an variety of engine platforms.
Starbucks Coffee Co. (NASDAQ: SBUX) said Thursday that it has reached a licensing agreement with SSP to open coffee retail stores in more than 150 airports and train stations in Europe. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) said its Australian operations declared force majeure under supply contracts because an explosion at a gas supplier slowed production. Alcoa said the disruption will likely lower second-quarter earnings by 2 cents to 3 cents a share. Also, JP Morgan downgraded Alcoa from Overweight to Neutral, saying the company will not be a takeover target.
Bloggers, investors and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) weren't just interested in the new 3G iPhone unveiled Monday. Many of them commented on the appearance of CEO Steve Jobs and voiced concerns for his health, saying he was gaunt-looking. While a spokeswoman said Jobs was hit with a common bug, many are worried since Jobs was diagnosed with a rare form of pancreatic cancer four years ago, for which he underwent surgery that Apple said was successful.
Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) was awarded a $397.1 million contract from the U.S. Army for two types of dozers with armor kits. The contract has one five-year option. Work is expected to be completed by 2018. Caterpillar is also holding its annual meeting today.
Donaldson Company (NYSE: DCI) manufactures filtration systems. The Engine Products segment makes air intake, exhaust and liquid filtration systems for the construction, industrial, mining, agriculture and transportation markets. The Industrial Products segment provides dust, fume, and mist collectors and air filtration systems used in industrial gas turbines, computer disk drives and manufacturers' clean rooms. Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) accounts for over ten percent of Donaldson's sales.
The company surprised investors last week, when it reported fiscal Q3 EPS of 57 cents and revenues of $587.8 million. Analysts had been looking for 51 cents and $540.4 million. Management also guided FY08 EPS to $2.08-$2.13, versus consensus of $2.07. Donaldson said it expects full-year industrial product sales to grow by 17-19%. Engine product sales were seen growing 11-13%.
Jefferies & Co reiterated its "buy" rating on BioMarin (NASDAQ:BMRN) ahead of its analyst meeting, according to the AP.
Oppenheimer downgraded Motorola (NYSE:MOT) to "underperform" from "perform" according toBriefing.com. The news service also reports that Lehman upgraded Northwest (NYSE:NWA) from "equal weight" to "overweight".
Readers of this space know that my investment bias is toward large-cap companies with demonstrated business models that have a competitive advantage in established markets, preferably with a favorable global trend as a support. And with the aforementioned in mind, Caterpillar is worth a review.
Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) is the world's No. 1 manufacturer in earth moving equipment and a leader in construction/agricultural equipment.
In general, analysts see CAT's 2008 revenue increasing 7-10% on strong international growth; North American revenue is expected to be flat.
Analysts also like the fact that Caterpillar is well-positioned to secure new business in emerging market economies for construction, infrastructure and land development work.
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.
Here are some highlights from this past week's 
Stocks futures are lower Tuesday morning, indicating U.S. stock markets will start on a down note following weak outlooks and disappointing financial results from several companies including Apple and American Express. With oil steady and no economic data out today, Wall Street will focus on earnings..gif){kind=logo}
Apple
The week in preview: Chicken soup (or a doughnut) for the recession-weary soul?
Comfort Zone Investing: Oil's down, which is a start, but not good enough
Stocks have their worst week in six years
