Jim Cramer's Mad Money Review

Sirius (SIRI) XM Satellite (XMSR) Crocs (CROX): Even though the SIRI/XMSR merger has been "topic one" in Congress, Cramer predicts it will be approved this year, and as a result, SIRI will move from $3.60 to $5.00. Cramer also noted CROX rose 4% due to a short squeeze, but he would still recommend it for the long-term.
Published by SeekingAlpha.com

Labels: CROX, Hot Stocks, Jim Cramer, SIRI, XMSR

"Who Needs Satellite Radio? Sirius (NasdaqGS: SIRI - News) and XM Satellite Radio (NasdaqGS: XMSR - News)
Investors may wonder why SIRI and XMSR are both proposing price cuts, and Jim Cramer indicates it is an act of desperation, as legislators depend on the survival of "terrestrial" radio stations, the sworn enemies of satellite radio, to run their campaign ads. Therefore, satellite radio has almost no friends in Washington. In addition, since many cars have an Apple facility, there is no need to use satellite radio unless one forgets his iPod at home. "Satellite radio is not indispensable, even though they claim that it is, and their balance sheets are the balance sheets from hell," Cramer said. "So this is the death mill for these companies if they can't get together."

Labels: Jim Cramer, SIRI, Wall Street Confidential, XMSR

Breaking Up is Good to Do: Heinz (NYSE: HNZ - News), Cadbury Schweppes (NYSE: CSG - News), American Standard (NYSE: ASD - News), Clorox (NYSE: CLX - News), ConAgra Foods (NYSE: CAG - News)
Cramer remarks "catalyst shareholder" Nelson Peltz has given valuable advice to HNZ and CSG and on March 15, CSG announced it is breaking up. He comments such a move has been good for other companies such as ASD, and discusses two other companies which could make "a cool 25% on your investment" with a split. He notes private equity firms are looking even at "tired old brands," and thinks Clorox's brand combination "makes no sense whatsoever." In addition, Cramer comments that keeping Conagra's problematic mixture of brands is like making a sandwich out of too many ingredients, and since both companies are in "the sweet spot of value creation" they could successfully spin-off their brands or sell them to private equity firms. Even if CLX and CAG don't split up, they have little downside, are cheap and good stocks to own in an ecomonic downturn, said Cramer.
Benefit of the Doubt: Jim Sinegal, the CEO of Costco (NasdaqGS: COST) and Lawrence Montgomery, CEO of Kohl's (NYSE: KSS - News)Continuing his series on CEOs who deserve the benefit of the doubt, Cramer thinks investors should have faith in Costco's Jim Sinegal, in spite of the stock's decline following the implementation of a stricter return policy. He says although COST may not be finished going down, he would trust Sinegal. Cramer added it is "ludicrous" that Wall Street does not trust Lawrence Montgomery of KSS, since the stores offer quality merchandise at fair prices. While he does not strongly recommend the stock at $75.75, Cramer says to buy KSS once it dips.
Mad Mail: Sirius Satellite Radio (NasdaqGS: SIRI), XM Satellite Radio (NasdaqGS: XMSR), Take-Two Interactive (NasdaqGS: TTWO)
Cramer predicts SIRI will rise to $5 if it merges with XMSR, but if not, it would drop from $3।26 to $1 or $2 and XMSR would be "wiped out." TTWO's numbers are nonexistent, said Cramer who liked the stock but would not buy it, because without a deal, it will go lower.
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Labels: ASD, CAG, CL, COST, CSG, HNZ, Jim Cramer, KSS, Mad Money, SIRI, TTWO, XMSR

Stocks that were moving substantially or trading heavily Wednesday on the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq Stock Market:
NYSE
Wal-Mart Stores Inc., up $1.49 at $49.96
The world's biggest retailer reported fourth-quarter profit growth of 9.8 percent, which beat analyst estimates.
Home Depot Inc., down 18 cents at $41.26
The world's largest home improvement store chain reported a 28 percent drop in fourth-quarter profit and a modest 4 percent gain in overall sales, but sales fell at stores open at least a year.
Vulcan Materials Co., down 72 cents at $111.09; Florida Rock Industries Inc., up $19.61 at $66.57
Vulcan said it is acquiring Florida Rock, a construction aggregate maker, for $4.6 billion.
NASDAQ
XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc., up $1.52 at $15.50; Sirius Satellite Radio Inc., up 28 cents at $3.98
The two satellite radio companies announced a proposed merger of equals on Monday, a move that would help them cut costs.
JetBlue Airways Corp., down 65 cents at $12.91
The discount airline canceled hundreds of flights and stranded some passengers for up to 10 1/2 hours last week due to snow and extreme temperatures.
New River Pharmaceuticals Inc., up $4.91 at $63.26; Shire PLC, up $3.14 at $66.42
British pharmaceutical company Shire is buying the U.S. drug maker for about $2.6 billion.
Published by AP

Labels: FRK, HD, Hot Stocks, JBLU, NRPH, SIRI, VMC, WMT, XMSR

Wall Street turned higher Tuesday as investors contended with conflicting data: declining sales at Home Depot Inc. last quarter and a Federal Reserve governor's encouraging assessment of the housing market.
The world's largest home improvement retailer reported that sales at its stores open more than a year dropped in the fourth quarter, indicating that consumers' appetite for home improvement goods is still dwindling due to the sluggish housing market.
Also adding to worries that Americans aren't buying as much as investors previously thought, Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s revenue came in below the average analyst forecast.
"We're always fascinated with the consumer, so we're taking their temperature constantly. That has been the driving force behind the economy," said Kim Caughey, equity research analyst at Fort Pitt Capital Group in Pittsburgh.
But comments from outgoing Fed Governor Susan Bies, who said the country may be seeing a bottom in slumping demand for housing, lifted stocks. Worries that the downturn in housing will drag down the rest of the economy have plagued stocks even as they've climbed to new highs in recent sessions.
There was some initial excitement in the market over the deal between XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. and Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. But investors grew wary as they looked more closely at the details of the deal -- whether the satellite radio merger is giving XM shareholder's stock a high enough premium, and whether the deal will actually happen, given the regulatory obstacles the companies must overcome.
In late morning trading, the Dow was up 6.57, or 0.05 percent, at 12,774.14, recovering from an earlier loss. Despite its choppy start, the Dow reached a new trading high of 12,780.15 after rising more than 200 points over the past four trading sessions. Markets were closed Monday for Presidents Day.
Broader stock indicators also turned higher. The Standard & Poor's 500 index was up 2.27, or 0.16 percent, at 1,457.81, and the Nasdaq composite index was up 9.09, or 0.36 percent, at 2,505.40.
Published by AP

Labels: HD, Hot Stocks, SIRI, WMT, XMSR

Wall Street retreated Tuesday as a huge decline in Home Depot Inc.'s profit last quarter offset excitement over the deal between XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. and Sirius Satellite Radio Inc.
The world's largest home improvement store chain reported a 28 percent drop in fourth-quarter earnings, indicating that the home improvement industry is still being dragged down by the sluggish housing market.
The wider retail sector still looked healthy after Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s financial results came in better than expected, but those results and the buzz over new takeover activity weren't enough to keep stocks afloat Tuesday, as investors took some profits after the Dow Jones industrials' record-breaking run last week.
Investors were also pressured to sell after a plunge in energy prices, weak earnings results from wireless phone company Alltel Corp., and worries over the repercussions of last week's peanut butter recall by ConAgra Foods Inc. and the spate of cancelled flights by JetBlue Airways Corp.
In midmorning trading, the Dow fell 42.62, or 0.33 percent, to 12,724.95, pulling back after rising more than 200 points over the past four trading sessions. Markets were closed Monday for Presidents Day.
Broader stock indicators also fell. The Standard & Poor's 500 index was down 4.80, or 0.33 percent, at 1,450.74, and the Nasdaq composite index was down 11.71, or 0.47 percent, to 2,484.60.
Bonds fell, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rising to 4.70 percent from 4.69 percent late Friday, even after the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago reported in its index of business activity that economic growth in the region was below average in January.
The dollar rose against other major currencies, while gold prices fell.
Oil prices tumbled $1.49 to $57.90 on the New York Mercantile Exchange after the Iranian president said his country would stop enriching uranium and return to negotiations, but only if Western nations do so, too.
Home Depot fell 30 cents to $41.14 after reporting earnings that fell short of analysts' expectations.
Wal-Mart rose $1.28, or 2.6 percent, to $49.76 after issuing its financial results, which showed fourth-quarter profit growth of 8.8 percent, better than analysts expected, and an upbeat forecast for 2007.
XM Satellite rose $1.39, or 10 percent, to $15.35, and Sirius Satellite rose 24 cents, or 6.4 percent, to $3.94, after their announced merger of equals. The deal still faces significant obstacles from the Federal Communications Commission.
In addition to the merger between XM Satellite and Sirius announced Sunday, British pharmaceutical company Shire PLC is buying U.S. drug maker New River Pharmaceuticals Inc. for about $2.6 billion, and that Vulcan Materials Co. is buying construction aggregate maker Florida Rock Industries Inc. for $4.6 billion.
Vulcan Materials Co. fell 60 cents to $111.21, while Florida Rock Industries Inc. soared $19.64, or 42 percent, to $66.58.
Shire's proposed buy of New River caused the U.S. drug marker's stock to surge $5.21, or 8.9 percent, to $63.56. U.S. shares of Shire rose $1.92, or 3 percent, to $65.20.
Declining issues outnumbered advancers by about 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 262.53 million shares.
The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 4.76, or 0.58 percent, to 813.39.
Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 0.01 percent. In afternoon trading, Britain's FTSE 100 was down 0.52 percent, Germany's DAX index was down 0.47 percent, and France's CAC-40 was down 0.72 percent.
Published by Madlen Read, AP Business Writer

Labels: AT, CAG, FRK, HD, JBLU, NRPH, SIRI, VMC, WMT, XMSR

Lear (NYSE: LEA - News), Time Warner (NYSE: TWX - News), WCI Communications (NYSE: WCI - News), Lennar (NYSE: LEN - News)
Cramer says that it is a good idea to piggyback off of financial wizards such as Carl Icahn who made good calls with Lear and TWX and is currently buying WCI. However, he stressed that it is important to understand why Icahn likes this upscale homebuilder which owns 86% of its properties. Cramer notes that WCI is sitting on a pile of real estate, is selling at below book value, and predicts that the stock will eventually be more valuable than the properties. While some are worried about Florida real estate, Cramer observes that Lennar recently made a successful Florida investment. An important rule in piggybacking, says Cramer, is to wait for the hype to pass before investing; Icahn bought WCI when it was four points lower, andit is now nearly $22.

Genentech (NYSE: DNA - News)
After enjoying a successful year, DNA is lower than it has been in the last 14 months, and Cramer attributes this to the market's subjectivity, especially since the company was expected to see 30% growth and it actually reported 70% growth. Cramer explained that the factors affecting the movement of a stock are its earnings and its multiple. Since DNA reported strong earnings, its multiple, or what people are willing to pay for the earnings, must have been a factor in its decline. A multiple is affected by three kinds of risk: political, earnings and inflation. Cramer eliminated earnings risks from the equation, said that inflationary risks affect future earnings and have peaked, and that worries about the Democrats hurting DNA have abated. Cramer concluded that DNA is heading back up to where it was 14 months ago, called it a best-of-breed biotech stock with a great pipeline. His conservative estimate is that DNA will go to $104 from $87.53 and his bullish figure is $140.

Sell Block:Guess? (NYSE: GES - News), XM Satellite Radio (NASDAQ: XMSR - News), Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE: IPG - News), Deere (NYSE: DE - News)
Cramer would sell Guess after it rose 38.7% since his initial recommendation. He would get rid of XMSR because it has "run out of steam." Although IPG may have some upside, Cramer would take profits and sell it. He has liked DE for a long time, but Cramer says that it is time to say goodbye. Although it might go up an other 8 points, Cramer says that this $100 stock has given its investors substantial profits.Mad Mail: Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL - News)
Cramer disagrees with an Investors' Business Daily bullish call on tech; "I like IBD very much but think they are wrong here," he said. When asked who is selling Apple, Cramer says that the shorts are putting pressure on the stock, adding that it should not have risen 8 points on the release of iPhone and its negative guidance may be bringing it down. However, he would build a position on the stock as it declines.

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Labels: AAPL, DE, DNA, GES, IPG, Jim Cramer, LEA, LEN, Mad Money, TWX, WCI, XMSR

Movin' on Up: Dolby (NYSE: DLB - News), Mastercard (NYSE: MA - News)
Cramer says that Dolby is still a buy even though it has risen substantially in the past month, and the stock reminds him of Mastercard which has kept going up. He comments that Dolby did not raise its estimates high enough and that it should fetch $1 per share in 2007. Dolby is "a great play on the flat-panel TV upgrade cycle, "and is starting to produce gaming consoles, notes Cramer who also likes that fact that 79% of its revenue comes from licensing which has big margins which should increase as it pursues the video market.
Trading Truce: eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY - News), Google (NASDAQ: GOOG - News), Yahoo (NASDAQ: YHOO - News), Baidu (NASDAQ: BIDU - News)
Although Cramer has been picking on eBay all summer, he finally declares that at $31.30 "it has become the ultimate value stock." First of all, he says that it is cheaper than it should be, it owns PayPal which web Goliath Google has not been successful in supplanting with its own service. Cramer admits that he was too critical of CEO Margaret Whitman, who has been negotiating advertising deals with Yahoo and Google, as well as an agreement with Baidu which will help distribute PayPal in China. In addition, eBay is flush with cash and is implementing buybacks, notes Cramer, who says that while he felt eBay was overpriced in the past, now "not only is it cheap, it's good."

Sell Block: Hershey (NYSE: HSY - News), Sirius Satellite Radio (NASDAQ: SIRI - News), Panera (NASDAQ: PNRA - News), XM Satellite Radio (NASDAQ: XMSR - News), Ford (NYSE: F - News), Smith & Wesson (NASDAQ: SWHC - News) and Bankrate (NASDAQ: RATE - News)
After hearing that Hershey lowered its earnings estimates, Cramer admits that he was wrong about the stock and suggested selling once it reaches $50 from$49.34. He also admitted a mistake in thinking that SIRI doesn't need to merge with XMSR. After SIRI lowered its sales outlook, Cramer thinks that the stock won't go anywhere "except slightly down unless it gets that merger with XM Radio." Yet another company, Panera, reduced its earnings estimates, blaming Midwestern stores. However, since only a small percentage of stores are affected, Cramer suspects that sluggish growth is the real reason for the reduction."It is running out of steam and I was wrong to recommend it. Get rid of it." Ford, which Cramer had recommended, is issuing convertible bonds with a 4% yield. "Now ... the common stock is plain wrong," Cramer said. "If you want to play Ford, then play it with the convertible bond for less-risky exposure." Finally, Cramer suggested taking some SWHC and RATE off the table.

CEO Interview: Sally Smith, Buffalo Wild Wings (NASDAQ: BWLD - News)
Cramer asked Sally Smith if BWLD could maintain its 11.8% company-owned sales growth, and she responded confidently that providing a good dining experience would encourage customers to come back. She added that the company could "absolutely" expand from 400 to 1,000 stores and noted that a new store was opened in Brooklyn, addressing a demand to go national: "We started getting letters from all over the country," she said. "They were craving the sauces and the wings and were wondering when we were going to their towns." Cramer commented on the restaurant chains "multiyear growth plan" and says that if it ever dips "back up the stock and buy some."
-Miriam Metzinger

Labels: BIDU, BWLD, DLB, EBAY, F, GOOG, HSY, Jim Cramer, MA, Mad Money, PNRA, RATE, SIRI, SWHC, XMSR, YHOO