Jim Cramer's Mad Money Review

Altria (MO), Bank of America (BAC), Chevron (CVX), Honeywell (HON), Conco-Phillips (COP), Freeport-McMoran (FCX), Schlumberger (SLB), American International Group (AIG), Pfizer (PFE), Cisco (CSCO)
Cramer was disappointed with Dow Jones' facelift which involved getting rid of Altria, and Honeywell, and adding Bank of America and Chevron. Three economic themes Cramer thinks should have been expressed in the Index changes are the growing importance of natural resources, the dwindling power of the financial sector and international growth. None of these themes were reflected in today's choices, Cramer commented. He said a financial should have been removed rather than added to the Dow, COP would have been a better choice than CVX, and would have considered including FCX or SLB in addition to keeping HON. He would have dropped AIG which is a travesty masquerading as an insurance company whose CEO, Martin Sullivan, was recently added to Cramer's Wall of Shame. He would also give Pfizer the pink slip, and would consider adding CSCO, since it is diversified.
Raytheon (RTN)
In spite of Goldman's Sachs note of Early indications of slowing growth in defense spending..., the military budget keeps growing; President Bush is asking for a $515 million for 2009 which is a 7.5% increase. Cramer likes RTN in this space because it has strong international sales, and is up 25% since Goldman's downgrade last March, but he would wait for a pullback before buying.
McDonald's (MCD), Darden (DRI)
One month of data does not justify a bearish position on a restaurant stock, said Cramer, noting McDonald's $6 rise since Bear Stearns hastily downgraded the stock for weak December same store sales (January same store sales increases 5.7%) An even faster kneejerk (or, rather, prejerk) occurred when Darden was downgraded only a few minutes before its better-than-expected guidance was released. The moral of the story, according to Cramer, is that when analysts unfairly downgrade stock on scant data, it is time to buy. Cramer would buy MCD now even though it has risen a bit.
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Labels: AIG, BAC, COP, CSCO, CVX, DRI, FCX, HON, Jim Cramer, Mad Money, MCD, MO, pfe, RTN, SLB

The Fed's creation of a temporary term auction facility to help ease the pain felt in the credit markets was "just another stupid thing that they did," Jim Cramer said on CNBC's "Stop Trading!" segment Wednesday.
"The proof is in the pudding," Cramer said. "What's the group that acts the worst today? The group that this is was meant for!" He noted that although Apple (AAPL), Chevron (CVX), Exxon Mobil (XOM) and Google (GOOG) responded well to the market, the financial sector was performing poorly on the news.
"They should have changed the statements to 50 basis points - merry Christmas, do your best," Cramer said. Instead, "Their amount of action ... a day's worth of Washington Mutual's (WM) problems."
Cramer suggested that the Federal Reserve members resign. "You are running some kind of offense that no one understands. ... These guys are really jokers." He cited the Fed's lack of experience in the markets as the source of their ineptitude. "They never sat on the desk," he said. "Go sit on a desk at Merrill Lynch (MER)."
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Labels: AAPL, CVX, GOOG, Jim Cramer, MER, Stop Trading, WM, XOM

Triple-S Management (GTS)
True success stories on The Street may be harder to find these days, but Cramer has observed the progress of non-profit Blue Cross Blue Shield companies that turn into public for-profit companies and found in their first four years the stocks had increased an average of 28%. He would consider Triple-S Management (GTS) which went public last week and has yet to set the sector on fire, since it opened only 16 cents above its $14.50 and undershot its projected range of $16-$18. Cramer said the companies contracts will become profitable and warned investors to do homework before buying and to use limit orders.
CEO Interview: Jack Cumming Hologic (HOLX)
Cramer likes HOLX for its visibility, growth and clean balance sheet and asked Jack Cumming about the merger with Cytic which was closed on Oct 22 and is running ahead of schedule. Cumming discussed the company's $1.3 billion convertible bond offering as a strategy to eliminate debt. Concerning competitors, He noted HOLX entered the scene two years behind its main rivals and is nine months ahead on the race for digital mammography. "We believe that when you have nine No 1. products, you're expected to grow at a fantastic rate," Cumming said.
Live with Regis' Portfolio: JDS Uniphase (JDSU), Time Warner (TWX), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), LSI Logic (LSI), Unisys (UIS), Freeport-McMoRan (FCX), McDonald's (MCD), CVS Caremark (CVS), Oceaneering (OII), Transocean (RIG), Chevron (CVX)
Regis told viewers not to worry about holiday retail sales, since people are lining up outside stores, and Cramer reviewed Regis' portfolio. First, he told Regis he missed the ideal opportunity to sell Time Warner, which rose recently, and would sell it now. He also told Regis to sell AMD, since the company is having trouble with its next chip and has Hector Ruiz at the helm. The ticker JDSU stands for "just don't sue us," said Cramer and he told Regis to sell. He gave LSI a "tepid buy" and added "it has a shot at coming back," but Cramer told Regis Unisys was one big "house of pain." Cramer suggested Regis replace these names with FCS, MCD, CVS, OII, RIG and CVX.
Teledyne Technologies (TDY), Ansys (ANSS)
Cramer says TDY and ANSS are two "Upod artists" that overpromise and underdeliver; "Upod works because the bedrock predictor is the trumping of earnings estimates," he said. TDY is tapped into aerospace and oil, has exceeded estimates an average of 15% per quarter, has made smart acquisitions and is cheap, but Cramer would wait for it to dip before buying. Ansys is the "market leader" in simulation and software, has strong overseas exposure, 68% return business and has exceeded estimates 40 consecutive times. The stock may seem expensive, but it is growing at an impressive 19% and should be trading at a higher multiple.
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Labels: AMD, ANSS, CVS, CVX, FCX, GTS, HOLX, JDSU, Jim Cramer, LSI, Mad Money, MCD, OII, RIG, TDY, TWX, UIS

The Dow closed up 51 points and the S&P 500 finished up 6 points. Crude oil is closing in on $100 as we near Thanksgiving. John Kilduff, an analyst at MF Global, joined the show to discuss his take on oil. He predicts the top on crude could be in area of $108 to $110. Adami favors Chevron (CVX), which he feels is cheaper then ExxonMobil (XOM). He advises looking at refiners like Tesoro (TSO) here. Finerman owns Tesoro and she is also looking at buying ConocoPhillips (COP).
Regional airlines are benefiting from the delays and congestion at larger airports. Airlines like Midwest (MEH) and Allegiant (ALGT) are benefiting from this trend. Adami says the way to play this trend is to buy the private jet makers like Textron (TXT), General Dynamics (GD), Embrear (ERJ) and Honeywell (HON).
For Defensive stocks Najarian likes Merck (MRK), Genentech (DNA) and Biogen (BIIB). However, Finerman would get defensive with names like Altria (MO) and Kraft (KFT). Adami also recommends Altria, Unilever (UL) and Procter & Gamble (PG).
Word on the Street
Target (TGT) reported a 4.4% fall in profits.
Whole Foods Market (WFMI) reported a decline in fourth-quarter profits, but sales top Wall Street estimates.
Google (GOOG) trades up 4% after Credit Suisse raised their price target to $900. Najarian believes names like Research In Motion (RIMM), Google and Apple (AAPL) are starting to show strength again. He would look to get back into these stocks around these levels. Adami prefers Microsoft (MSFT).
Najarian would keep an eye on ISIS Pharmaceuticals (ISIS) and Sangamo Biosciences (SGMO).
Pops & Drops
Pops - Barnes & Noble (BKS) traded up 13% after reporting higher internet sales.
Exxon (XOM) traded up 4% after UBS upgraded the stock.
Kraft (KFT) traded up 2%.
Utilities EFT (XLU) traded up 1%.
Drops - Office Depot (ODP) fell 7% after reporting a 9% decline in profits.
Echostar (DISH) fell 7%
Ericsson (ERIC) fell 12%
Hovnanian (HOV) fell 9%.
GameStop (GME) fell 4% after the video game maker missed analyst estimates.
Saks (SKS) fell 2% after missing estimates.
Final Trade
Macke likes the price action in Microsoft (MSFT).
Adami recommends Freeport McMorRan (FCX).
Finerman says to short the iShares Dow Jones US Real Estate ETF (IYR).
Najarian would purchase Pulte Homes (PHM) for a short term buy.

Labels: ALGT, BIIB, CNBC, CNBC's Fast Money, COP, CVX, DNA, erj, Fast Money, GD, HON, KFT, MEH, MRK, PG, TGT, TSO, TXT, ul, XOM

Chevron (CVX): Cramer said the recent rally was only a “dead cat bounce” for the financials and would sell stock in that sector and buy oil stocks, such as Chevron and minerals.
Rio Tinto (RTP) and BHP Billiton (BHP), CVRD (RIO), Freeport McMoRan (FCX): Cramer was critical of Citigroup’s downgrade of RTP and BHP. He expressed his bullishness on both stocks and included RIO and FCX which he says is not a falling knife but a stopping knife.
KHD Humboldt (KHD) and AECom (ACM): Cramer notes ACM is down and says it is a buy. He also likes KHD.
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Labels: ACM, BHP, CVX, FCX, Jim Cramer, RIO, RTP, Stop Trading

Costco (COST), GAP (GPS), Valero (VLO), Chevron(CVX): Cramer prefers COST to other warehouse retailers because "They have an exciting thing… they made it so you can't regard it as a Wal-Mart or a Target." He also likes GPS because of its incentives for new management. In spite of warnings from Valero and Chevron, Cramer would keep the faith, because he has seen refining margins "explode" recently.
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Labels: COST, CVX, Hot Stocks, Jim Cramer, Stop Trading, VLO

Wall Street stumbled through a lopsided session Wednesday, closing mixed as profit warnings and news from blue chip names Alcoa Inc. and Boeing Co. dragged down the Dow Jones industrial average but largely spared technology stocks.
A pullback was to be expected after the Dow and the Standard & Poor's 500 index finished at new highs Tuesday amid enthusiasm over comments from Federal Reserve policymakers about interest rates, but corporate news appeared to hasten Wednesday's slide.
Declines by Dow components Boeing and Alcoa, among others, hurt the 30-stock index. Meanwhile, International Paper Co. and Chevron Corp. moved lower on profit news.
With investors thumbing through fresh quarterly results and corporate announcements, the latest economic readings did little to dislodge the dichotomy between blue chips and tech stocks. A report showed inventories among U.S. wholesalers ticked up in August, while a trade group for real estate agents warned the drop in sales of existing homes this year will be steeper than had been expected.
The stock market's uneven but still relatively calm trading Wednesday followed a surge the day before that was sparked by release of the minutes from the Fed's last meeting. Wall Street initially was ebullient that the Fed didn't appear to rule out further rate cuts but, on reflection, some investors seemed to be questioning whether that response was a little too optimistic.
Source: Tim Paradis, AP Business Writer

Labels: AA, BA, COST, CVX, IP, Wall Street

Bullish:
Cisco (CSCO): if you want to be in tech.
J.C. Penney (JCP): He thinks that this stock is undervalued and is a buy at this price.
Integrated oil companies like ConocoPhillips (COP), Chevron (CVX), and Exxon Mobil (XOM) are better plays.
American Eagle (AEO), Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) or Aeropostale (ARO), in that order.
Kellogg (K): Cramer is bullish on Kellogg, as well as General Mills (GIS) and ConAgra (CAG).
Cramer is sticking with Baidu.com (BIDU) as the best China play.
Cramer likes NVIDIA (NVDA), Texas Instruments (TXN), and Intel (INTC)

Bearish:
Xerox (XRX)
American Capital Strategies (ACAS): Cramer's undecided on the stock, so he's avoiding it.
Tesoro (TSO): Cramer thinks gas prices aren't high enough to be in a refiner,
Luxottica (LUX): "Don’t buy!"
Hot Topic (HOTT)
Aluminum Corp. of China (ACH)
American Superconductor (AMSC)

Labels: ACAS, AEO, ANF, ARO, BIDU, CAG, COP, CSCO, CVX, GIS, INTC, JCP, Jim Cramer, Lightning Round, Mad Money Lightning Round, NVDA, TXN, XOM, XRX

Procter & Gamble (PG): Procter & Gamble is cheap to the mid-$70s. Stay in it.
Dominion (D): Cramer gives it the triple buy!
Omniture (OMTR): "Stock is going to $35. Do not sell."
Boeing (BA): Sotck goes to $120. Boeing "all aboard."
Ceragon Networks (CRNT): "Just go buy Cisco (CSCO)"
Intuitive Surgical (ISRG): Wait until you have $10,000 or more. Cramer endorses the stock.
Archer Daniels Midland (ADM): Buy Deere (DE), Monsanto (MON), and Bunge (BG) instead. "52 week high."
Seagate (STX): Cramer doesn't like the disk drive stocks, and thinks you should go with Intel (INTC) or Hewlett-Packard (HPQ).
Chevron (CVX): Cramer thinks you have to own the stock unless you own ExxonMobil (XOM) or ConocoPhillips (COP).

Labels: ADM, BG, COP, CRNT, CSCO, CVX, D, DE, HPQ, INTC, ISRG, Jim Cramer, Lightning Round, Mad Money, MON, OMTR, PG, STX, XOM

Greed is Bad: Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT - News), Google (NasdaqGS: GOOG - News), Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN - News), NVidia (NasdaqGS: NVDA - News), Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE: AMD - News), Corning (NYSE: GLW - News), Apple (NasdaqGS: AAPL - News), Bunge (NYSE: BG - News), Celgene (NasdaqGS: CELG - News), Cummins (NYSE: CMI - News),Level 3 Communications (NasdaqGS: LVLT - News), Chevron (NYSE: CVX - News) and ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM - News), Countrywide Financial (NYSE: CFC - News), Amazon (NasdaqGS: AMZN - News), Boeing (NYSE: BA - News), Colgate (NYSE: CL - News), ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP - News),
Cramer's said his Game Plan is a bit different this week; he is listing stocks reporting next week, but wants viewers to buy only one (Corning) before its report. While he is bullish in general and still believes the Dow will hit 14,500 by the end of the year, he admits things have been a bit precarious with the disappointing Google and CAT quarters, and suggests taking some profits to avoid being dangerously greedy. Cramer calls Google a "show me" company which has to prove that it can monetize its new hires, or face a decline. While he had faith in CAT for its international exposure, the culprit was "housing, which is so horrible that it brings down anything it touches." However, he thinks the stock will regain its momentum and eventually reach $120. Cramer discussed next week's earnings reports:
Monday: Cramer would buy TXN, his favorite semiconductor, if there is a decline after the report. He suggests selling some NVDA, which is up 6 points, and would buy some back if it gets knocked down by AMD's analyst meeting.
Tuesday: CFC is "the biggest and best view" of how housing really is .... "its really bad," and remarked that the Fed will only notice when a bank, broker or major homebuilder goes under. "Hobbled horseman" Amazon will be viewed negatively no matter what it says, so Cramer would buy on a decline.
Wednesday: BA's consistency during the selloff was impressive, said Cramer who predicts the stock is going to 120. He added if it drops to below $100 before its report, he might buy. While CL is a "classic weak dollar" play, it is a bit high. While COP may face a downgrade, Cramer would buy it on a decline because he predicts it will reach $120. Cramer called GLW "the gold star" and said it is the only stock he would buy ahead of its quarter next week, because doesn't think the company would raise its dividend and buy back stock right before a major disappointment. Cramer would sell some Apple since "hogs get slaughtered."
Thursday: Since Bunge rose after last quarter's decline, Cramer predicts a repeat performance and would buy Bunge when it drops. Cramer likes Celgene long-term and recommends picking some up when it declines. Although he thinks Cummins is not finished with its run, he would take some profits, especially after CAT's upset. No one will like Level 3 Communciation's quarter, said Cramer, and he would buy this stock which is a great play on internet video.
Friday: "Wake up and smell the gasoline!" said Cramer, remarking it is greedy to stay in CVX and XOM without selling a little.
French Foreign Legion of Oil Companies: Total S.A. (NYSE: TOT - News)
Cramer continued his series on European stocks with Total, a massive integrated oil with strong production and refining assets in 27 countries. He thinks TOT is as good as Exxon, better than Chevron, and is cheaper than other major oil companies. He also thinks TOT is better and cheaper than European oils BP and Shell. TOT has a 13% stake in Sanofi Aventis, the French drug company, and Cramer hopes TOT will sell some and use the cash for "oil-related activity."
On Speculation: Tessera Technologies Inc. (NasdaqGS: TSRA - News)Cramers speculative pick for Friday is TSRA, which specializes in miniature technologies, which is a hot area since 80% of the Dram memory industry uses TSRA's technology. TSRA licenses its technology, so it has no inventory to move, and since Microsoft's Vista will be memory-intensive, there will be more demand for TSRA's technology. While the company is involved in a lot of lawsuits, TSRA is winning the cases and protecting its intellectual property. Finally, the 20x multiple is cheap considering its 31% growth rate.
CEO Interview: CEO T.J. Rodgers Cypress Semiconductor (NYSE: CY - News) and SunPower (NasdaqGM: SPWR - News)
Cramer congratulated Rodgers on a "magnificent quarter" and added that CY would be undervalued at $800 million if it spun off its power systems and services company, SunPower. Rodgers responded that while investors sometimes give him "heat" about holding on to SPWR, "the overall value of the company is reasonable." Cramer called Rodgers a visionary and a moneymaker.
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Labels: AAPL, AMD, AMZN, BA, BG, CAT, CELG, CFC, CMI, CVX, CY, GLW, GOOG, Jim Cramer, LVLT, Mad Money, NVDA, SPWR, TXN, XOM

Bullish:

Trinity Industries (NYSE: TRN - News): ' TRN's the one I've been featuring. That's the best railcar play... They also have a wind power focus.'Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM - News)Chevron (NYSE: CVX - News)Cameco (NYSE: CCJ - News)Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ - News): ' ... was stuck at $45 on Friday, started to inch higher. That one is the next one to breakout.'News Corp. (NYSE: NWS - News): 'The Dow Jones bid? I think that they ought to hit it ... Rupert Murdoch. He's a winner. I want to own his stock. The guy is a great businessman. People want to dump on him all the time. They don't have a clue.Qualcomm (NasdaqGS: QCOM)Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN - News)Nokia (NYSE: NOK - News)Atwood Oceanics (NYSE: ATW - News): 'You're talking about a driller! A driller to the power of nine - buy, buy, buy!'Halliburton (NYSE: HAL - News)Vail Resorts (NYSE: MTN - News): ' Good trade into June 11th. I suspect great numbers, but then get out of it, because the summer is a bad time for that one.'
Neutral calls:
Darling International (AMEX: DAR - News): '... this is a respectable play... This is an $8 stock, so I've been reluctant to talk about it... But I'm doing a memo to staff right now... maybe we sneak this in one day.'
Bearish calls:
Blockbuster (NYSE: BBI - News): 'Remember, we felt that when Joe Antioco got the boot there, we went with his boot. I cannot get behind BBI. Sell, sell, sell!'FreightCar America (NasdaqGS: RAIL): 'I can't get behind RAIL .... RAIL is not best in show.'Vaalco Energy (NYSE: EGY - News): 'Too dangerous my friend! I tried to get behind this company once before. It has got these incredible properties off the coast of Africa, but I want to be very honest... I have not seen this company deliver... I see nothing but the house of pain.'Evergreen Solar (NasdaqGM: ESLR): 'You should be selling your solar stocks, including that stock - sell, sell, sell! - and buying them after the big wave of underwriting knocks the whole group down.'Brightpoint (NasdaqGS: CELL): 'I need you out of that stock! I don't think there's anything really cooking there... Sell a little bit now, and let it go up... you should be out of it by $16.'CDW Corp (NasdaqGS: CDWC): ' I was asked about CDWC last week... Take profits! The stock was up 25% in six weeks. We like the market. A better play is Hewlett-Packard.'

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Labels: ATW, BBI, CCJ, CVX, DAR, EGY, HAL, HPQ, Jim Cramer, Lightning Round, Mad Money, MTN, NOK, NWS, TRN, TXN, XOM

Oil is Well: BP (NYSE: BP - News), Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM - News), ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP - News), Chevron (NYSE: CVX - News), Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB - News), National Oilwell Varco (NYSE: NOV - News), GlobalSantaFe (NYSE: GSF - News), Halliburton (NYSE: HAL - News), KBR (NYSE: KBR - News) and Transocean (NYSE: RIG - News)
Cramer sees buying opportunity in the oil sector because market players are "not looking at the right things" but are instead paying attention to weather and inventory numbers. "Base your decisions on how its customers are doing," urged Cramer, saying earnings are not a good indicator right now, and the only major integrated oil he is recommending is BP, based on its yield rather than its earnings. "The only safe and profitable place to be" is drilling, commented Cramer, and he cited a XOM statement that it had been too conservative with oil production and said he expects to hear the same thing from COP and CVX. Cramer would buy deepwater drillers ahead of analyst meetings, picked only five worth owning in 2007 and ranked them in descending order.
5. Schlumberger: an undervalued stock4. National Oilwell Varco: The only company that develops rigs that dig deeply enough. NOV has "years of backlog" which should keep estimates up.3. Global Santa Fe: has an aggressive buyback2. Halliburton: Although many do not like the company's move to Dubai, Cramer feels it is a necessary strategy to gain back market share from SLB. He predicts HAL will "jump up fast" on a tender offer because of its KBR spinoff. He would hold HAL after the spinoff.1. Transocean: "How can you not own a rig stock that's called RIG?" Cramer said of his number one oil-drilling pick, and added that day rates are "skyrocketing," RIG is a good takeover or merger target, and since options expiration is coming up, "this stock is going to end at $75 at the end of the week," which Cramer feels is a good entry point. On Monday, RIG was sitting at $76.62. Hansen Medical (NasdaqGM: HNSN), Intuitive Surgical (NasdaqGS: ISRG) and Stereotaxis (NasdaqGM: STXS)
Hansen Medical could be "the next Intuitive Surgical," a stock which has risen 1, 124 %since its IPO in 2000, says Cramer, and he says subpharma is the place to be since it is immune from subprime problems. HNSN makes robotic catheters that are easy to maneuver, has a "big target market," and although its machine hasn't been approved yet, Cramer believes it will be approved first in Europe and then in America by the end of the year. Although the company is losing money "hand over fist" and does not yet have any revenues, Cramer would buy the stock, albeit with tight limit orders and only after doing homework. Although HNSN does not quite have a monopoly, its machine is cheaper than that of its sole rival STXS.
Mad Mail: Altria (NYSE: MO - News) and Celgene (NasdaqGS: CELG)
Cramer suggested owning the regular Altria stock instead of the new MO-issued shares, but told investors to wait until he did a segment on the stock. He urged an investor who sold CELG to buy it back.
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Labels: BP, COP, CVX, GSF, HAL, Jim Cramer, KBR, Mad Money, MO, NOV, RIG, SLB, XOM

Wall Street eked out a modest advance Tuesday after investors found little motivation in remarks by Federal Reserve officials and also shrugged off a warning from chip maker National Semiconductor Inc.
Major indexes squeaked by with gains after spending most of the session extending Monday's losses. Investors have been left looking for direction after the Fed held interest rates steady last week, and as corporate earnings season winds down.
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke did not address interest rates when he spoke before the Omaha Chamber of Commerce. Similarly, speeches by two other central bankers and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson also had little news to sway investors.
National Semi warned that sales will fall steeper than expected; the news initially cast a shadow across the market, but by the close of trading, even the tech-dominated Nasdaq composite index had recovered.
"I get the sense investors are waiting to see what the market is going to do next, and aren't entirely convinced that a slight pullback is going to manifest itself," said Mike Malone, trading analyst at Cowen & Co. "There really wasn't any expectation that something would come from Bernanke. But the fact its over leaves investors looking around for what's next."
According to preliminary calculations, the Dow rose 4.57, or 0.04 percent, to 12,666.31.
Broader stock indicators finished narrowly higher. The Standard & Poor's 500 index added 1.01, or 0.07 percent, to 1,448.00, and the Nasdaq rose 0.89, or 0.04 percent, to 2,471.49.
Stocks got some support from a decline in bond yields as fixed-income investors place bets on where interest rates are headed. The bond market had hoped to glean more from speeches by Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell to 4.77 percent from 4.81 percent late Monday. The dollar was lower against other major currencies, while gold prices advanced.
Oil prices continued to climb on concerns that a blast of arctic weather in the Midwest and Northeast might linger, and drive up demand for heating fuel. A barrel of light sweet crude rose 14 cents to $58.88 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
A jump in demand could lead to higher energy costs, but also greater profits for energy producers. However, any benefit to big oil companies was offset by disappointing results from BP PLC.
Britain's biggest refiner fell 54 cents to $63.25 after reporting fourth-quarter profit slipped 22 percent, and slashed its growth targets for this year. Anadarko Petroleum Corp. shares fell 48 cents to $42.47 after it said fourth-quarter profit doubled due to a one-time gain on the sale of a Canadian unit.
Exxon Mobil Corp., a component of the Dow Jones industrials, fell 21 cents to $75.46, while Chevron Corp. shed 41 cents to $73.37.
Matt Kelmon, portfolio manager of the Kelmoore Strategy Funds, said investors will be looking at further fluctuations in the energy sector as one way the market might pick a direction. He also said there will be continued scrutiny over corporate earnings, although many major companies have already reported.
"The market is not expensive, it's not dirt cheap, and the catalyst over the past few weeks has been earnings," he said. "Everything is really on hold until the market finds something else to talk about, but there's still no huge sign of an imminent pullback."
Technology stocks were among the market's biggest decliners, led by the semiconductor sector. National Semi fell 64 cents, or 2.8 percent, to $22.68 after it predicted lower-than-expected sales in the third quarter because of lower shipments to the Asia Pacific region.
Rival Advanced Micro Devices Inc. fell 28 cents to $15.32, while Texas Instruments Inc. shed 37 cents to $31.22. Intel Corp., the worlds largest chip maker for personal computers, rose 3 cents to $21.31.
In other corporate news, Avon Products Inc. rose $3.38, or 9.8 percent, to $38 after the maker of beauty products said its fourth-quarter profit edged up from a year ago as the company struggled with restructuring costs.
McClatchy Co., the nation's second-largest newspaper publisher, rose 53 cents to $39.29 after its operating earnings surpassed Wall Street projections.
Las Vegas Sands Corp. fell $3.41, or 3.3 percent to $100.68 after the casino company reported fourth-quarter profit was boosted by an unexpected $30 million gain from its high-rollers table. Advancing issues outnumbered advancers by about 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 1.47 billion shares.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 3.34, or 0.41 percent, to 810.03. The index surpassed 800 for the first time last week, and reached an all-time high of 810.49 in the previous session.
Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average closed up 0.36 percent. At the close, Britain's FTSE 100 was up 0.45 percent, Germany's DAX index added 0.02 percent, and France's CAC-40 fell 0.08 percent.
Published by Joe Bel Bruno, AP Business Writer

Labels: APC, AVP, Ben Bernanke, BP, CVX, Hot Stocks, INTC, LVS, MNI, TXN, XOM

Chevron (NYSE: CVX - News):Cramer is bullish on oil and disagrees with Deutsche Bank's downgrade of CVX, because the steep decline of this oil company, which used to be the premier operator, leaves plenty of room for an upside, and Cramer adds that he likes CVX's dividend. In addition, at 9 times earnings the stock is too cheap to sell, and he comments that CVX has a lot of untapped reserves from its acquisitions.
Nabors (NYSE: NBR - News) and Halliburton (NYSE: HAL - News): Cramer calls NBR a "rumored stock" and recalls that its CEO, Gene Eisenberg, came on his show and expressed his frustration with his company's low valuation. Cramer says that NBR is too linked with natural gas, and he doesn't see how NBR will get out of its slump, but sees more potential in HAL because it has better assets, and he predicts the stock will someday be "up big." Cramer commented that the fact that NBR is up after preannouncing a downside is a "little ridiculous."
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Labels: CVX, HAL, Hot Stocks, Jim Cramer, NBR

Bullish calls:
Nymex Holdings (NYSE: NMX - News): 'This stock does nothing but go up. ... Stick with it.'Grainger (NYSE: GWW - News)Wesco (NYSE: WCC - News): 'Did you see the explosion in that stock this week off the quarter? ... Still very, very cheap. I am recommending it heartily.'Chevron (NYSE: CVX - News): 'Holy cow! ... I look for the dividend to go up. I look for another buyback. I think you should back up the truck. That's my favorite integrated oil.'Devon Energy (NYSE: DVN - News)Amgen (NasdaqGS: AMGN)Genentech (NYSE: DNA - News)Celgene (NasdaqGS: CELG)Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ - News): ' ... is not just a PC assembler ... this is a technology company, run by Mark Hurd, who I think is the best. ... I need you to load up the boat, Hewlett-Pacakrd, that's best in show.'Valero Energy (NYSE: VLO - News): 'Not bad. ... it's a cheap stock ... 'Archer Daniels Midland (NYSE: ADM - News): 'If I want to refine these days, I'm gonna refine soybean or corn. I'm buying Archer Daniels Midland.'Amor Holdings (NYSE: AH - News)General Dynamics (NYSE: GD - News)L-3 Communications (NYSE: LLL - News)
Bearish calls:
1-800-Flowers.com (NasdaqGS: FLWS): 'It doesn't deserve to be owned. We're ixnaying.'Sirius Satellite Radio (NasdaqGS: SIRI): 'You know that stock ain't going anywhere. ... I want you to sell it nine ways to Super Bowl Sunday. 'Medarex (NasdaqGM: MEDX): 'This is precisely what I'm railing against at this juncture.'Illumina (NasdaqGM: ILMN): 'Not a good quarter. Expenses are going to rise. ... I need you out of that stock, and I want you to sell it right now.'Force Protection (NasdaqCM: FRPT): 'I think you need to go with the majors here.'
Published by SeekingAlpha

Labels: ADM, AH, CELG, CVX, DNA, DVN, FLWS, FRPT, GD, GWW, HPQ, ILMN, Jim Cramer, LLL, Mad Money, MEDX, NMX, SIRI, VLO, WCC

Wall Street rebounded Tuesday, rising moderately as crude oil surged more than $2 a barrel and triggered a rally among energy producers. Investors regained their optimism about corporate profits after a series of positive earnings reports.
Energy prices spiked across the board after the Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman said the U.S. will double the size of the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Prices were already rising as a cold snap in the northeast United States was seen increasing demand for heating fuels in the region.
Exxon Mobil Corp. led blue chips and was among the Dow Jones industrials' biggest gainers, while fellow refiners ConocoPhillips and Chevron Corp. also surged during the session. The advance in oil stocks helped the Dow recover from a steep decline Monday, its biggest drop in two months.
The markets also got a lift from robust earnings reports from United Technologies Corp. and Texas Instruments Inc. This helped offset a warning from telecommunications equipment maker Alcatel-Lucent that it would not post a profit during the fourth quarter because of a steep decline in sales.
"Earnings are not coming in all that bad," said Brian Gendreau, an investment strategist with ING Investment Management. "There is an absence of any real bad news, leading indicators are up, and companies are not falling off the table. That's consistent with the modest rise in the Dow."
In late afternoon trading, the Dow rose 55.76, or 0.45 percent, to 12,532.92.
Broader stock indicators also advanced. The Standard & Poor's 500 index was up 4.79, or 0.34 percent, at 1,427.74, and the Nasdaq composite index added 1.15, or 0.05 percent, to 2,432.22.
Bond prices fell, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rising to 4.80 percent from 4.76 percent late Monday.
In economic news, a Richmond Fed Survey showed a slip in its manufacturing index this month. Meanwhile, the Conference Board said U.S. economic activity is set to increase slightly in the coming months.
The dollar was mixed against other major currencies, while gold prices spiked. A barrel of light, sweet crude settled up $2.47, or 4.7 percent, to $55.04 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
As has been typical in previous sessions, oil companies got a boost on the rebound in crude prices. The refiners stand to benefit if the government expands its reserves. Exxon Mobil rose $1.85, or 2.5 percent, to $74.75; ConocoPhillips was up $1.88, or 2.9 percent, at $65.25; and Chevron increased $1.66, or 2.3 percent, to $72.88.
This helped investors shake off Alcatel-Lucent's statement that it will not turn a profit in the first quarter since the company was created with last year's $11.6 billion deal between France's Alcatel and Lucent of the U.S. The company blamed integration costs and weaker sales because of consolidation among its customers.
Alcatel-Lucent fell $1.24, or 8.7 percent, to $12.95. Rival Tellabs Inc. fell 8 cents to $9.94 after despite reporting a plunge in sales caused profit to fall 68 percent during the latest quarter.
However, technology stocks were up overall after chip maker Texas Instruments reported a robust quarterly profit and was upgraded by several Wall Street firms. Shares rose $1.04, or 3.6 percent, to $29.63.
United Technologies, which makes everything from air conditioners to aircraft engines, reported fourth-quarter profit rose 38 percent, which sent shares up $2.34, or 3.7 percent, to $66.4322.
Bank of America shares fell 48 cents to $53.17 after the nation's biggest retail bank reported growth in its loan business and its acquisition of credit-card issuer MBNA Corp. helped boost profit during the latest quarter. Rival Wachovia Corp. shares rose 11 cents to $56.38 despite posting better-than-expected results.
DuPont posted higher quarterly earnings that met Wall Street forecasts, but investors were concerned about how the impact of higher raw materials costs will impact the chemical maker. Its stock fell 83 cents to $49.27.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller gained 7.73, or 0.99 percent, to 785.69.
Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average closed down 0.08 percent. At the close, Britain's FTSE 100 was up 0.15 percent, Germany's DAX index dropped 0.13 percent, and France's CAC-40 shed 0.08 percent.
Published by Joe Bel Bruno, AP Business Writer

Labels: ALU, CVX, TXN, UTX, XOM

Apple (Other OTC: APPL.PK - News), AT & T (NYSE: T - News), Verizon (NYSE: VZ - News), Research in Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM - News), Palm (NASDAQ: PALM - News)
Cramer observed that those who are bearish on Apple are having a hard time, since the company has a "transcendent" brand and is "the most identifiably interesting stock to the market." However, he would take care when buying because of the enthusiasm over iPhone and he believes the company is vulnerable to short-sellers. "I would sell some of the stock right here," Cramer said. He suspects a few rumors could bring the stock down. Cramer adds that if Cingular, which has a contract with Apple, can improve its service, it can grab 60% to 70% market share, and Cramer thinks that Cingular's parent company AT &T is "an incredible buy here." Concerning the rumor that RIM might buy Palm, Cramer says that he's not interested, and observed that both companies got slammed on Tuesday. "RIM had its day and it didn't go up," Cramer said, and he thinks Palm is not an "investable situation."
Related: Herb Greenberg comments on Apple's Hubris.
Chevron (NYSE: CVX - News) and Sears (NASDAQ: SHLD - News)
Cramer is worried about oil, and thinks that the sector is finding a new level after having been artificially kept up at the end of the year. He adds that oil futures are asking analysts to make some downgrades, and he notes that Chevron is particularly vulnerable. When Aaron Task remarked that Sears is perpetually hated by the bears, Cramer noted that CEO Eddie Lampert is usually downbeat, but wasn't recently, since Sears is down 5% in same store sales when it has been down 12% for the past few years. Cramer says that this means the stock will go to $200 sooner than he expected. When Task asked Cramer if there is a point at which a Sears investor would be "piggish," Cramer explained that he thinks Sears is the next Berkshire Hathaway "This is one of the few positions in my life that I've ever seen that people are dramatically underestimating," Cramer remarked and added that he would only consider cutting back if the stock threatens to overwhelm his portfolio.
Related: Gary Dorsch discusses what is behind the oil price crash.
Published by SeekingAlpha

Labels: CVX, Jim Cramer, PALM, RIMM, SHLD, T, VZ

Here are 7 stocks for traders for Thursday from TradingMarkets.com:Genentech (NYSE:DNA - News) beat earnings on Wednesday afternoon, with $0.61 EPS over an expected $0.55 EPS. DNA's PowerRating is 5.U.S. Airways (NYSE:LCC - News) upped its hostile takeover bid for Delta Airlines to $5 billion in cash. LCC's PowerRating is 5.Infosys (NASDAQ:INFY - News) reports earnings on Thursday before the open; look for $0.36 EPS. INFY's PowerRating is 6.M&T Bank (NYSE:MTB - News) announces quarterly earnings on Thursday morning, with analysts expecting $1.88 EPS. MTB's PowerRating is 6.MGIC Investment (NYSE:MTG - News) is expected to report $1.53 EPS on Thursday before trading begins. MTG's PowerRating is 6.IHS (NYSE:IHS - News) reports earnings on Thursday afternoon, so watch for heightened price action and volume ahead of the close. IHS's PowerRating is 6.Oil stocks remain a focus as crude continues to fall steadily. Chevron (NYSE:CVX - News) warned that Q4 revenues will be negatively effected by crude prices. CVX's PowerRating is 6.
PowerRatings are courtesy of PowerRatings.net

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