Jim Cramer's Mad Money Review

This site is dedicated towards tracking Jim Cramer's stock picks on his TV show Mad Money. Read about and discuss Jim Cramer's ability to move markets. Be ahead of the stock market. Get the news before its news.

Monday, October 13, 2008

Jim Cramer's Mad Money Review 10/10

The best way to sustain Friday's late rally is for the government to cut a back-room deal with the largest banks and brokerages to get them to start making loans again, Jim Cramer told viewers on his "Mad Money" TV show on Friday.
On a day when Dow closed down 128 points after another extremely volatile session, Cramer said this "secret" meeting is necessary to get the economy, credit markets and stock markets rolling again and avoid a repeat of this past week's brutal market.
Cramer said he would have the Federal Reserve take the initiative by inviting to the meeting the CEOs of large financial institutions such as Citigroup(C ), Bank of America(BAC ), Wells Fargo(WF ), JP Morgan(JPM )Morgan Stanley(MS), and Goldman Sachs(GS ), the latter three of which he owns for his Action Alerts PLUS portfolio.
Cramer said the Fed would tell the CEOs that it would not repeat the mistake it made when it allowed Lehman Bros to fail. Instead, he said, the Fed would do all that it can to get the financial institutions open for business again.
He said the Fed would guarantee all their debts as well as their brokerage, savings and corporate accounts. Furthermore it would allow them to pay off their bonds with federal money, permit them to sell their credit default swaps lower and provide them $100 billion each to lend.
In return, these financial institutions would have to live up to their end of the bargain by "opening the spigots" and make loans again. He said the loans will be targeted to corporations, small businesses and individuals - but not hedge funds.
He also said the Fed would have the financial institutions divvy up the "bad banks" among themselves, with the aim of having them assume the good deposits while selling the bad assets to the federal government's newly created Troubled Asset Recovery Program.
Cramer said that after the market's worst-ever weekly drop it's "time to change our incredibly negative bias," as stocks are no longer in endless sell mode.
For Cramer it's time to rent some stocks, with a look at owning longer term if the market again approaches the lows seen on Friday. Cramer believes the market will chase those lows since the market rarely bottoms on a Friday, and the snapback by stocks was too far, too fast.
That means a new game plan is needed for the cash that Cramer told traders to peel off last month.
Expecting a gap down on both Monday and Tuesday, Cramer advises putting 25% of that cash back in play on both days. As usual, Cramer is against buying all at once.
As for where to put it, Cramer offered a stock like Kellogg(K ) as a template, based on its rallying behavior a year after the 1987 crash.
Of course, Cramer said this isn't 1987 - times are a lot worse. Given that, Cramer suggests loooking at companies that are trading around their cash on hand, such as KBR(KBR ).
You should also look at companies that make products that you eat, such as Kraft(KFT), Heinz(HNZ ), Coca-Cola(KO ) and Altria(MO ). Cramer owns Kraft and Altria in his Action Alerts Plus portfolio.
Cramer also likes giant pharmaceutial Merck(MRK ), cyclical plays Nucor(NUE )and Freeport McMoRan(FCX ), which he also owns for his Action Alerts PLUS portfolio, but reminded viewers that you only want a small position with the last two, since they aren't self-financing.
Cramer would be careful with financials, but he likes US Bancorp(USB ), and threw in a recommendation for Duke Energy(DUK ).
The new leadership is companies that don't need money, Cramer said.
Half-Empty
Cramer likes that traders dodged a bullet on Friday, with a "spectacular" rally off the lows of the morning, but he believes it's important to lay out the worst-case scenario so investors can go forward "with their eyes open."
In the worst case, the model isn't the 1987 market crash, which saw equities bounce back only a year later, but a "1929 scenario" which brought an 89% peak-to-trough drop and a "decline that just wouldn't quit."
In that model, Cramer said, currently flailing stocks like U.S. Steel(X ) and General Motors(GM ) wouldn't be done yet.
Cramer said that unfortunately the parallels with the 1929 crash are too close for comfort. As in 1929, he explained, we have a presidential administration that's in over its head. Listening to Bush say the government taking necessary actions to solve the crisis is like President Herbert Hoover saying than that the worst is behind us.
Cramer noted the market's tanking after Bush's most recent comments about the market, as well as the similarities of a Federal Reserve too focused on inflation and a wave of bank failures.
Cramer said he believes the federal bailout plan can help, but that a second Great Depression is still on the table. "That's why you have to be careful with your buying," he said.
Published By TheStreet.com

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Monday, September 17, 2007

Jim Cramer's Mad Money Stock Recap Sept. 14th

Wall of Shame: Citigroup (C), Syntax Brillian (BRLC), Alcatel Lucent (ALU)
Cramer, equal opportunity critic of bad CEOs described three current Wall of Shame chiefs who disgraced themselves even further last week. Cramer owns Citigroup for his charitable trust and has been on a crusade to have CEO Chuck Prince removed, because the bank's management is the worst he has ever seen due to unwise investments. Only their huge deposit base will save them. However, Cramer would hold Citigroup, because he feels it has potential. BRLC dropped 35% last week thanks to chief Vincent Sollito's passing the buck to Asian partners after the company failed to meet earnings expectations, according to Cramer, who added he resents the way Sollito painted a rosy picture of the company when he appeared on Mad Money. Cramer commented on Patricia Russo's remarkable lack of execution as the company's orders shrink amid a telco boom benefiting ALU's competitors. He would sell BRLC and ALU.
Outfoxing the Fed: Coca-Cola (KO), PepsiCo (PEP), Kellogg (K), General Mills (GIS), Wachovia (WB), Goldman Sachs (GS), Morgan Stanley (MS)
Cramer discussed three scenarios: the Fed would not cut rates and create Armageddon, or would introduce a quarter or a half-point cut, either of which will not yield good results. Insisting that the Fed needs to cut rates a full point, Cramer said lesser cuts will lead to hard selling, and it is a good time to look at classic defensive stocks such as KO, PEP, K, and GIS. A half-point cut on Tuesday means it is time to buy solid financial stocks such as WB, MS and GS.
Fantasy Football Stocks: Exxon Mobil (XOM), Medco Health Solutions (MHS) Enterprise Products Partners (EPD), was Research In Motion (RIMM), Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold (FCX)
To conclude his fantasy football series, Cramer revealed his team picks on Friday. His quarterback was XOM which, like Peyton Manning of the Colts, is expected to match last year's great performance. MHS is a strong defensive play that could go to $100 and is as dependable as the New England Patriots. With a 6.5% yield and a good combination of safety and defense, EPD was Cramer's pick for tight end, and reminded him of Jason Witten of the Dallas Cowboys. RIMM is doing fabulously be every metric and could double again. Cramer compared the company's potential growth to that New England Patriot wide receiver Randy Moss. FCX can survive a difficult economy, according to Cramer, and its gold business should do well in China. He picks FCX as his running back, similar to LaDainian Tomlinson of the San Diego Chargers.
Mad Mail: Caterpillar (CAT), EMC (EMC) and VMware (VMW)
Cramer told one writer that CAT is a good CEEMEA (Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Asia) play. Another writer questioned the need to diversify in a tech boom, and said 65% of her portfolio was made up of tech stocks. Cramer reminded her of the dot.com fiasco in the 90s. Finally, a writer asked Cramer why he preferred owning EMC to VMW. He replied that EMC benefits from the success of VMW but is cheaper and safer.
Published by SeekingAlpha

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Friday, August 17, 2007

Jim Cramer's Wall Street Confidential Aug. 16th

PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP - News), Pfizer (NYSE: PFE - News), Schering-Plough (NYSE: SGP - News), Kellogg (NYSE: K - News), General Mills (NYSE: GIS - News), Altria (NYSE: MO - News), CVS Caremark (NYSE: CVS - News), MedcoHealth (NYSE: MHS - News), Cardinal Health (NYSE: CAH - News)
Cramer says almost everyone, including him, is "getting killed" in this market, and he wants viewers to understand "why it's so cataclysmic out there, so at least they have the grounding to say, 'OK, I'm willing to ride this out." While some suggest getting out of stocks, Cramer recognizes many people invest for the long term. However, he added; "What I'm trying to do is focus on what can work and what will really be hurt, not what's working, because nothing's working." Cramer said he got through the credit crunch in 1990s by focusing on the bull market and on 20 stocks that weren't losing. Examples may be PEP, PFE, SGP, K, GIS, MO, CVS, MHS, CAH. While he may have 10 to 1 bears out of every stock pile, Cramer urges viewers to "recognize that as the Federal Reserve continues to do a de facto tightening, you're going to continue to have spillover."
Published by SeekingAlpha

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Thursday, August 09, 2007

Jim Cramer's Mad Money Stock Recap Aug. 8th

Wall Street Casino: Cisco (NasdaqGS: CSCO - News), Under Armour (NYSE: UA - News), Coke (NYSE: K - News), Pepsi (NYSE: PEP - News), Level 3 Communications (NasdaqGS: LVLT - News)Cramer compared the stock market to a poker table at the Fed's casino where Ben Bernanke can change the rules at will. Everyone thought John Chambers, CEO of Cisco, was bluffing when he said networking was strong and announced a big buyback five days before the end of the quarter, but it turned out he was holding a full house. Cramer doesn't think Cisco's luck has run out yet, and thinks LVLT also has a "hot" hand. Under Armour had a poker face all quarter and showed a straight flush. Everyone sees Coke and Pepsi's hand, comments Cramer, and they will always have three of a kind, which is good in the current environment. However, financials have such "crummy" hands that they don't even try to fake it anymore.CEO Interview: Mackey McDonald, VF Corp. (NYSE: VFC - News)Cramer praised VFC for focusing on its brands and for expanding overseas while the domestic retail sector has been challenged lately. McDonald said the consumer is still buying, but is concentrating on high-quality products. "having a portfolio of strong brands is extremely important," he added, "We're always looking for additional brands. We establish a target list of areas we're not strong in that we want to be strong in. We find the best brands to fit those needs and try to make the best acquisitions we can." Cramer says VFC doesn't need the American consumer to thrive.Mad Mail: Hitting HomeWhen a viewer asked Cramer if a cut in interest rates will be bad for the dollar and harm investor holdings relative to the rest of the world, he said he doesn't care about dollars and tariffs, but is concerned about millions of Americans who are faced with the prospect of losing their homes.Published By SeekingAlpha

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Wednesday, August 08, 2007

Jim Cramer's Mad Money Stock Recap Aug. 7th

The Fed Gets a Clue: Kellogg (NYSE: K - News), Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB - News), Kimberly-Clark (NYSE: KMB - News), Fannie Mae (NYSE: FNM - News)
Commenting on the Fed announcement, Cramer said, "What we got was, frankly, what we needed, and we rallied." The Fed decided to allow the interest rate to remain at 5.5%, a move Cramer says shows the Fed "may be heartless, but its not clueless." He predicts the Fed is heading towards a rate cut, which he thinks will happen in October. He also detected a hint at government intervention to solve the housing crisis, and Cramer thinks the Treasury Secretary or the President may ask Fannie Mae to help relieve some of the credit pressure. In the meantime, Cramer would buy defensive stocks such as K, SLB and KMB and would concentrate on oil, agriculture and infrastructure.
Getting Defensive: Unilever (NYSE: UN - News)
Cramer likes UN as a defensive stock to depend on in down times, because it a major producer of packaged foods, is international and therefore unaffected by US credit problems, and has a generous 3.6% dividend cushion. In addition, nearly a third of its sales come from emerging countries; "It's a play on people getting richer around the world," Cramer said. Since the stock has risen a bit, Cramer suggests letting it drop a few points before buying.
CEO Interview: Doron Gerstel Syneron Medical Ltd. (NasdaqGS: ELOS - News)
Cramer was puzzled that Syneron, which reported 52% US growth and 21% European growth, got hammered after its phenomenal quarter. The company also has a deal with Procter & Gamble to develop a non-invasive skin product and a fat remover. The mystery was solved when Cramer spoke with CEO Doron Gerstel who commented that everyone is jumping on the "aesthetic bandwagon; The main concern the market has is that it's looking at the competition, and more and more companies are doing initial public offerings," he said. "They're worried about saturation in the sector." Cramer commented this may be a cause for serious concern and suggested holding off buying ELOS until it becomes clear whether or not the company will be pressured by new IPOs.
Published by SeekingAlpha

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Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Jim Cramer's Mad Money Stock Recap July 30th

Doomsday Scenario: MDC Holdings (NYSE: MDC - News), DR Horton (NYSE: DHI - News), Pulte Homes (NYSE: PHM - News) and Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL - News)
Cramer created a doomsday scenario which probably will not happen, since the bank crisis in 1990 was "ten times worse" than the problems of today. However, he would avoid any companies which deal with borrowing and lending money, particularly housing: DHI, PHM and TOL. The only housing stock that isn't hopeless now is MDC, but Cramer would still not buy. He would also avoid financials amid bearish fears that loans will not be repaid and yields will shrink; "You can't own anything that even walks by a mortgage," Cramer warned. He would not touch companies which need financing for deals. However, Cramer added; "the worst-case scenario will be derailed," and the doom and gloom will not really materialize
If Ben will Budge: Centex (NYSE: CTX - News), Lennar (NYSE: LEN - News), Bear Stearns (NYSE: BSC - News), Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS - News), Citigroup (NYSE: C - News)
Cramer discussed two scenarios which could reverse doomsday: overseas buyers and an interest rate cut. He is confident that if the Federal Reserve reduces rates by only one percent, housing will make a comeback (especially DHI, PHM, CTX, LEN), financials GS and C will recover and the Dow will jump to 15.
Playing it Safe: Celgene (NasdaqGS: CELG - News), Kellogg (NYSE: K - News), Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB - News), Medco Health Solutions (NYSE: MHS - News), Kimberly-Clark (NYSE: KMB - News), Amazon.com (NasdaqGS: AMZN - News), Google (NasdaqGS: GOOG - News), Apple (Other OTC: APPL.PK - News) and Research in Motion (NasdaqGS: RIMM - News)
Even if the Fed doesn't budge rates, investors can still create a safe portfolio consisting of CELG, K, SLB, MHS and KMB. He also directed viewers to his six wild bull markets: oil and oil services, agriculture, machinery, aerospace, infrastructure and minerals, and his four horse men of tech: AMZN, GOOG, APPL and RIMM.
Mad Mail: Brookfield Asset Management (NYSE: BAM - News), Rite Aid (NYSE: RAD - News), ValueClick Inc. (VLCK)
Cramer urged a mailer not to sell BAM, because it is an international company, unaffected by subprime woes, and is similar to Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway; "If you sold Warren Buffet because of a housing problem, forget it!" To a mailer concerned about RAD, Cramer said, "The integration is going very well. I'm holding your hand on RAD, and begging you not to sell it." Concerning VLCK's bad quarter, he commented, "I don't have my arms around it yet. To me, the stock looks like it's going to see $18, before you see a bottom."
Published by SeekingAlpha

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Monday, July 30, 2007

Jim Cramer's Mad Money Stock Recap July 27th

PepsiCo (P'EP), Kellogg (NYSE: K - News), Nova Chemicals (NYSE: NCX - News), Schering-Plough (NYSE: SGP - News) and Celgene (NasdaqGS: CELG - News), EMC (NYSE: EMC - News)
In the aftermath 0f last week's carnage, Cramer urged investors to search in the rubble for damaged stocks but not damaged companies. One indicator that the damage is only skin deep is if the companies reported great quarters right before the selloff. However, financial and housing stocks are simply no good, according to Cramer. While Pepsi and Kellogg both reported great quarters, Pepsi jumped and then gave back its gain while Kellogg went flat. He prefers Pepsi to Coke and thinks this $66 stock is really worth $80. Cramer predicted Kellogg will have a great quarter. He considers both stocks to be an antidote for a slowing economy. Concerning NCX, Cramer said the quarter was strong and he thinks the company will be taken over. Cramer likes SGP and CELG, even though the latter stock is up. Cramer liked EMC's quarter so much, he bought the stock, and he says the company's spinoff of VMWare will be VMware "the sexiest initial public offering of the year."
Boeing (NYSE: BA - News) and Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT - News)Cramer predicts BA and LMT will go to $120, since both had been at $80 and are now around the $100 mark. BA is producing fuel-efficient planes which hold more passengers and is not affected by the domestic economy. Cramer would buy a maximum of 100 shares incrementally. He adds LMT is a good play on the Iraq War, since the defense budget is "huge." Cramer added LMT is a good international stock and is a "buyback king."
Adobe (NasdaqGS: ADBE - News)
Cramer feels secure about the tech because the sector usuallly does well in the late summer and it has the least exposure to housing ills. He likes ADBE right now even more than Microsoft because he thinks the third and fourth quarter will benefit from sales of Creative Suite 3, the "best software for publishing."
Mad Mail: Transocean (NYSE: RIG - News) and Omniture (NasdaqGM: OMTR - News)
Cramer calls RIG the most creditworthy company apart from Schlumberger, but he would recommend selling some gains. He adds that he hopes those who saw a $4 jump for OMTR sold some stock.
Published by SeekingAlpha

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Friday, July 27, 2007

Jim Cramer's Stop Trading July 26th

Lehman (NYSE: LEH - News), JP Morgan (NYSE: JPM - News) and Bear Stearns (NYSE: BSC - News): After Thursday's carnage, Cramer has put financials on probation, and outlined necessary factors that would allow these stocks to perform again. First, Wall Street should cut its estimates, second, there should be layoffs in mortgage and corporate bonds departments. Third, the companies have to keep better track of what they have been losing to sub-prime debt and hung bridge loans. Cramer would stay away from JPM because of its connection with corporate debt and would not touch any housing stocks.
Pepsi (NYSE: PEP - News), Kellog (NYSE: K - News), Bunge (NYSE: BG - News), Celgene (NasdaqGS: CELG - News), Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB - News): Cramer would go "bottom fishing" in soft goods, such as Pepsi, which is down and Kellogg, whose quarter was "thing of beauty." He also likes agriculture and healthcare, especially BG and Celgene. Since Exxon is not drilling enough oil, Cramer predicts SLB will be called upon to come to the rescue. He also reiterated his praise for the tech sector which is "hot" in late summer.
Published by SeekingAlpha

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Jim Cramer's Mad Money Stock Recap July 26th

Bull Meat Barbecue
Although Thursday's selloff resembled a "bull meat barbecue," Cramer encouraged viewers not to lose heart and reiterated his principle that there is always a bull market somewhere. He made a checklist of three kinds of stocks to avoid: Stocks, such as housing, which need low interest rates to go higher, stocks (restaurants, retail etc.) with too much leverage to the domestic economy, and companies which must borrow to make an acquisition. Cramer emphasized the importance of selling these stocks, especially for those who did not lighten their portfolios before the selloff and those who cannot take the pain and wait for these sectors to recover.
Game Plan for Next Week: Pepsi (NYSE: PEP - News), Colgate (NYSE: CL - News), Kellogg (NYSE: K - News), Kimberly Clark (NYSE: KMB - News), Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT - News), Foster-Wheeler (NasdaqGS: FWLT - News), Freeport McMoRan (NYSE: FCX - News), Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB - News), Halliburton (NYSE: HAL - News), Boeing (NYSE: BA - News), Bunge (NYSE: BG - News), Monsanto (NYSE: MON - News), Dell (NasdaqGS: DELL - News), Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ - News), Cisco Systems (NasdaqGS: CSCO - News), Celgene (NasdaqGS: CELG - News), Merck (NYSE: MRK - News), Medco Health (NYSE: MHS - News)
Because on The Street, a trauma does not usually follow a trauma, Cramer expects a bounce at least by Monday, and would get rid of financials, retail and restaurants and buy soft goods, such as PEP, CL, K and KMB. Dismissing worries of a potential worldwide slowdown, Cramer likes machinery and mining, particularly CAT, FWLT and FCX. He also recommends oil, although natural gas has been tricky, and his picks are SLB and HAL. Cramer's favorites among aerospace and agriculture include BA, BG and MON, and he adds the tech sector has been hot and would buy DELL, HPQ and CSCO. In the healthcare sector, he especially likes CELG and MHS and doesn't mind MRK.
Pscyhed Up with Sycamore Networks (NasdaqGM: SCMR - News)
After the selloff devastation, there is still one thing Cramer can count on; that tech will continue to thrive in the late summer as it does every year. Cramer likes SCMR as a speculative telecom tech stock, since the company has almost a pure play on optical services. SCMR is not best-of-breed, but he is still bullish because SCMR does not yet have any analysts covering it and he likes SCMR's floor; it's at $4 a share but has the equivalent of $3.23 a share. In addition, the company's sales have been rising and 60% of its revenue is international. While SCMR is not as strong as Cisco or Cienna it could make investors more money.
Mad Money: Hoku Scientific (NasdaqGM: HOKU - News), Genzyme (NasdaqGS: GENZ - News), Celgene (NasdaqGS: CELG - News)
When a mailer asked about Hoku, Cramer recalls having recommended it at $6, and it has recently dropped from $11 to $8. At this level, Cramer says, it is too speculative, but he thinks it will repeat its upward trend after it falls back to $7 or $6. Another mailer wanted to know Cramer's opinion of GENZ; while the fall is good for biotech in general, he prefers Celgene to GENZ. On the issue of whether Freeport McMoRan's report of strong cash flow will be good for Caterpillar, Cramer says he likes CAT, but it has been hit hard for its North American exposure. While he says CAT is "your best play" he adds currently he is "loathe to buy more."
Published by SeekingAlpha

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Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Jim Cramer's Stop Trading May 29th

Mastercard (NYSE: MA): After Bear Stearns gave MA an outperform rating and a price target of $184, the stock rose 2% to $141.82. Cramer says MA is going "much, much higher."General Mills (NYSE: GIS), Kellog (NYSE: K): Cramer says GIS and K are exceptions to the market's surprisingly "soggy" trading action.

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Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Jim Cramer's Mad Money Stock Recap Mar. 13

Getting Defensive: Kroger (NYSE: KR - News), Safeway (NYSE: SWY - News), Supervalu (NYSE: SVU - News), Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE: CL - News), Kimberly-Clark (NYSE: KMB - News)
"Subprime is the only problem," Cramer reassured investors after the "absolutely brutal" downturn on Tuesday which affected the whole market. While mortgage lenders should be suffering from subprime lending woes for awhile, Cramer remarks, "It is wrong for the Street to be so indiscriminate ... before we damn the whole market, let's remember what were damning." However, this widespread decline provides a buying opportunity in defensive sectors, such as food, drugs and utilities, sectors which historically perform well when housing is doing badly. Cramer suggests looking at KR, SWY, SVU, CL and KMB, but only after three days, since "the future on the commodity that has captured stocks -- the S&P 500 -- expires Friday, so I expect very little upside in this group until Monday."
Thank You for Smoking: Altria (NYSE: MO - News), Altria's When-Issued Shares MO-WI (MOWI), Kraft (NYSE: KFT - News), General Mills (NYSE: GIS - News), Kellogg (NYSE: K - News), Sara Lee (NYSE: SLE - News)
"There's nothing more defensive than cigarettes," says Cramer who recommends Altria's when-issued shares, MO-WI, which are comprised of pure Philip Morris stock without the Kraft spinoff. Cramer comments Philip Morris is best-of-breed and the MO-WI shares offer a higher dividend. He suggests buying before March 30th when MO-WI will rejoin Altria. Although Cramer doesn't dislike KFT, he prefers food stocks GIS, which has been "doing fabulously," K and SLE, which have more "consistent and exciting growth" than KFT.
Dow Chemical (NYSE: DOW - News), Alcoa (NYSE: AA - News), BHP Billiton (NYSE: BHP - News), and Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (NYSE: RIO - News)
Cramer admits he has been waiting since February for DOW and AA to dip after takeover rumors which were printed a British newspaper. While he discourages speculation on potential buyouts if the fundamentals are not strong, "the fundies for both DOW and AA are pretty good." According to the rumors, Dow could be purchased by private equity firms at $60 a share, a substantial premium from its present rate of $42.94. He notes the company has a 3.5% dividend yield, has been raising prices and cutting costs. There is talk that BHP and RIO are eyeing AA at $40 billion, or $40.68 a share, while its current price is $32. The companies need the extra smelting capacity, and Cramer comments aluminum should perform better than it has been. "Buy Dow and Alcoa because when there's smoke, there's fire."
CEO Interview: Brian Roberts, Comcast (NasdaqGS: CMCSA) with Verizon (NYSE: VZ - News)
Cramer asked Brian Roberts if Comcast raised its capital expenditure in order to compete with rival Verizon, and he replied, "We upped our spending because people are buying our new products in record numbers. We're selling 50,000 phone subscriptions a week." This 30% increase "costs some money," although Roberts added these expenses will not interfere with Comcast's buyback plan; "We have bought back almost 10% of stock in the last two-and-a-half years, and we're going to continue buying back stock," Roberts said. Cramer would pull the trigger on Comcast and referred to Roberts as "money in the bank."
Published by SeekingAlpha

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Jim Cramer's Mad Money Review Mar. 13

Getting Defensive: Kroger (NYSE: KR - News), Safeway (NYSE: SWY - News), Supervalu (NYSE: SVU - News), Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE: CL - News), Kimberly-Clark (NYSE: KMB - News)
"Subprime is the only problem," Cramer reassured investors after the "absolutely brutal" downturn on Tuesday which affected the whole market. While mortgage lenders should be suffering from subprime lending woes for awhile, Cramer remarks, "It is wrong for the Street to be so indiscriminate ... before we damn the whole market, let's remember what were damning." However, this widespread decline provides a buying opportunity in defensive sectors, such as food, drugs and utilities, sectors which historically perform well when housing is doing badly. Cramer suggests looking at KR, SWY, SVU, CL and KMB, but only after three days, since "the future on the commodity that has captured stocks -- the S&P 500 -- expires Friday, so I expect very little upside in this group until Monday."

Thank You for Smoking: Altria (NYSE: MO - News), Altria's When-Issued Shares MO-WI (MOWI), Kraft (NYSE: KFT - News), General Mills (NYSE: GIS - News), Kellogg (NYSE: K - News), Sara Lee (NYSE: SLE - News)
"There's nothing more defensive than cigarettes," says Cramer who recommends Altria's when-issued shares, MO-WI, which are comprised of pure Philip Morris stock without the Kraft spinoff. Cramer comments Philip Morris is best-of-breed and the MO-WI shares offer a higher dividend. He suggests buying before March 30th when MO-WI will rejoin Altria. Although Cramer doesn't dislike KFT, he prefers food stocks GIS, which has been "doing fabulously," K and SLE, which have more "consistent and exciting growth" than KFT.

Dow Chemical (NYSE: DOW - News), Alcoa (NYSE: AA - News), BHP Billiton (NYSE: BHP - News), and Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (NYSE: RIO - News)
Cramer admits he has been waiting since February for DOW and AA to dip after takeover rumors which were printed a British newspaper. While he discourages speculation on potential buyouts if the fundamentals are not strong, "the fundies for both DOW and AA are pretty good." According to the rumors, Dow could be purchased by private equity firms at $60 a share, a substantial premium from its present rate of $42.94. He notes the company has a 3.5% dividend yield, has been raising prices and cutting costs. There is talk that BHP and RIO are eyeing AA at $40 billion, or $40.68 a share, while its current price is $32. The companies need the extra smelting capacity, and Cramer comments aluminum should perform better than it has been. "Buy Dow and Alcoa because when there's smoke, there's fire."
CEO Interview: Brian Roberts, Comcast (NasdaqGS: CMCSA) with Verizon (NYSE: VZ - News)
Cramer asked Brian Roberts if Comcast raised its capital expenditure in order to compete with rival Verizon, and he replied, "We upped our spending because people are buying our new products in record numbers. We're selling 50,000 phone subscriptions a week." This 30% increase "costs some money," although Roberts added these expenses will not interfere with Comcast's buyback plan; "We have bought back almost 10% of stock in the last two-and-a-half years, and we're going to continue buying back stock," Roberts said. Cramer would pull the trigger on Comcast and referred to Roberts as "money in the bank."

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Thursday, January 18, 2007

Jim Cramer's Wall Street Confidential Jan. 17

Rackable Systems (NASDAQ: RACK - News), Intel (NASDAQ: INTC - News), Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ - News), Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT - News), Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO - News), Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL - News)
Cramer says that investors should be selling tech because seasonality is working against the sector, and that RACK's problem has more to do with the time of year than its component shortage and competition. Concerning Intel, Cramer explains its new chip will not reach a 90% to 95% acceptance rate this year, and since gross margins will not rise until then, Intel "cannot be owned" right now. However, the problems with RACK and Intel do not alter Cramer's prediction that tech will outperform in 2007. Cramer would buy HPQ because it will benefit from Microsoft's Vista. Cramer would also pick up Cisco down at $26 or $25 because of the incredible ramp in cable; "If you have a product cycle, I think you can ride out the seasonable weakness," Cramer said. Apple transcends seasonality because it is a "secular growth story and and a product cycle story." He would take advantage of any decline to buy Apple.
JP Morgan (NYSE: JPM - News), Capital One Financial (NYSE: COF - News)
Cramer is bullish on JP Morgan because of its credit card growth and added that COF is one of the most hated stocks, noting that there is a tremendous January $75 put to buy COF. If the company reports a lackluster quarter, the puts will act as a trampoline. Cramer says that it is worth investing in airlines again, and would take profits and buy them again.
UPS (NYSE: UPS - News), Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG - News), Colgate (NYSE: CL - News), Kellogg (NYSE: K - News), General Mills (NYSE: GIS - News), Oil Service HOLDRs (AMEX: OIH - News), Caremark (NYSE: CMX - News), Rite Aid (NYSE: RAD - News), Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA - News), Time Warner (NYSE: TWX - News)
Cramer is bullish on UPS and likes rails, which are a buy on any decline because the trucking sector is suffering. He added that Goldman Sach's upgrade of PG was worth noting and, if it weren't for a strike, the stock could reach $67 or $69. He attributes the success of PG and CL to investor's desire to look for other soft goods that are not dependent on corn prices. However, since cereal is only 3% to 4% corn, Cramer thinks selling Kellogg and General Mills is premature. Concerning oil, Cramer thinks that OIH has been a reliable barometer for oil prices and is heading toward a bottom, but he hesitates to recommend it because it is an "easily manipulated index." Cramer would ring the register on Caremark, and of all the drugstores, he would own only RAD. Finally, Cramer predicted that Comcast is "headed dramatically higher" and said that, at $22, Time Warner is undervalued.
Published by SeekingAlpha

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