On Thursday, Jim Cramer, the host of Mad Money, discussed that a sudden shift in Federal Reserve expectations, strong retailer earnings, and healthy Thanksgiving-weekend spending helped revive consumer-stock sentiment despite gloomy confidence surveys.
“Although we got a quarter-point rate cut from the Fed yesterday, for much of November, it looked like the rate cut was off the table. We kept hearing the Fed officials talk about persistent inflation, signaling they were inclined to skip a rate cut in the December meeting. But in late November, that changed. In fact, you can pretty much trace the bottom to the Friday before Thanksgiving when the president of the New York Fed said he thought there was room to cut rates, citing weakness in the labor market. Went from expecting no more Fed help to believing that the Fed was still… on our side overnight, which breathed new life into all kinds of consumer stocks.”
READ ALSO: Jim Cramer Expressed Thoughts on These 14 Stocks and Jim Cramer Highlighted 7 Stocks in Light of the Fed Rate Cut.
Cramer added that it reminded him not to get caught up in the constant guessing game around Fed moves the way so many people do. At the same time that expectations were changing, he said, several of the country’s strongest retailers reported upbeat quarterly numbers. On top of that, he pointed to the Thanksgiving stretch from Black Friday through Cyber Monday, noting that sales growth during that period held up well.
“Now, this is important because it cuts against the narrative from most consumer confidence measures, which have been very weak. Now, I’ve warned you about this before. What consumers say in polls about how they’re feeling is often very different from what consumers actually do with their money. People are very clear that they’re not feeling too great about their finances, but they’re still spending like normal, at least when it comes to holiday shopping.”
Our Methodology
For this article, we compiled a list of 12 stocks that were discussed by Jim Cramer during the episode of Mad Money aired on December 11. We listed the stocks in the order that Cramer mentioned them. We also provided hedge fund sentiment for each stock as of the third quarter of 2025, which was taken from Insider Monkey’s database of 978 hedge funds.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 427.7% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 264 percentage points (see more details here).
12 Stocks on Jim Cramer’s Radar Recently
12. Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 74
Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) is one of the stocks on Jim Cramer’s radar recently. Cramer highlighted the change in the company’s valuation over time, as he remarked:
“At the top, in 2000, Cisco’s forward price to earnings multiple was somewhere near, over 130. That’s ridiculously high for any market. That should have been a clarion call. Now, Cisco is valued at less than 19 times forward earnings now, literally less than a sixth of its peak valuation in the dot-com era. These days, it’s viewed as a stable, growing tech company that helps clients manage their networks and keep them secure. That’s a much more prosaic version of Cisco than we were being pitched 25 years ago. I know it well because my hedge fund owned Cisco for years and made a killing in it…
Of course, Cisco turned out to have made you nothing if you stubbornly held on to it. We sold it as well as almost all of our other stocks in March of 2000, shortly before the top… This time, though, we got long Cisco for the Charitable Trust, precisely because of how cheap it is and how CEO Chuck Robbins has reinvented the company. We don’t invest in irony for the trust. We invest in companies, and this company’s at the heart of the AI revolution. Yet, it doesn’t get the respect or the price-to-earnings multiple that its compadres do despite accelerating product order growth and a rock-solid balance sheet.
In the latest quarter, Cisco’s earnings jumped 10% on an annual basis. Revenue increased 8%. These are good numbers, people, for a stock that trades at just 19 times earnings. I keep hearing that the AI revolution will end like the dot-com revolution in 2000, a disaster. It’s true that there are plenty of fully valued companies now, but time and again, they reported higher than expected earnings, and it turns out, they only looked fully valued on estimates that were too low. So many turned out to be cheaper in retrospect, including Cisco.”
Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) creates networking, security, and collaboration tools that help organizations stay connected and protected.
11. MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 109
MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI) is one of the stocks on Jim Cramer’s radar recently. Toward the end of the lightning round, a caller sought Cramer’s thoughts on MELI, and here’s what Mad Money’s host had to say in response:
“That is such a good company. I was an original investor in it, and I had to give up stock. Obviously, I’m not doing any stocks. That is a good one.”
MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI) runs an online marketplace and financial platform that lets users buy, sell, and pay for goods and services. Janus Henderson Forty Fund stated the following regarding MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI) in its third quarter 2025 investor letter:
“MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI), another detractor, is a leading online retailer and financial technology company in Latin America. The company has recently faced increased competition from other online retailers such as Amazon and Shopee. Investors worried about the impact of the increased competition on MercadoLibre’s margins and profitability, and the stock declined. We continue to believe MercadoLibre is the dominant operator in a Latin American region where e commerce and financial technology are underpenetrated. We maintained our position.”
10. NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 73
NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) is one of the stocks on Jim Cramer’s radar recently. When a caller asked if the stock could get a signature, Cramer “Booyah!”, he replied:
“You are going to get a Booyah because I like the nuclear component there. I think it’s a very well-run company.”
NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) produces and sells electricity from multiple sources and provides energy management, home services, and smart home solutions. Cramer mentioned the company while discussing the performance of S&P 500 stocks during the July 1 episode and said:
“Next up is NRG Energy, which was the second best performer, up 78%. This Houston-based power generation utility is roaring thanks to the insatiable demand for electricity in the year of AI data centers. Lately, these power generation utilities have been huge winners. I mean, we saw it with Constellation Energy, Vistra. It’s happening again with NRG. However, NRG is only partly an independent power producer.
[The] company also has a residential utility as well as a home solar business. And as the Wall Street Journal recently pointed out, it makes a lot of money from derivatives trading. I’m not crazy about that, but it makes NRG more like an energy trading hedge fund in some respects. I’m not crazy about that either, which brings me to the other reason the stock’s having a great year. Back in May, NRG announced it’s acquiring a handful of natural gas fuel power plants along with some other assets from LS Power.
The deal’s valued at $12 billion, though that’s in cash and stock and the assumption of debt. NRG stock jumped 26% the day the deal was announced, and it’s climbed a bit more since then because Wall Street loves the fact that they’re doubling down on power generation. Also, caused a lot of shorts to cover because they were just in there to believe that it was just a big hedge fund.”
9. DexCom, Inc. (NASDAQ:DXCM)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 71
DexCom, Inc. (NASDAQ:DXCM) is one of the stocks on Jim Cramer’s radar recently. A caller asked if they should buy, sell, or hold the stock during the lightning round. In response, Cramer said:
“You know, it’s too rich a stock, and I do think the GLP-1s are going to have such a dramatic effect on their market. I don’t want to own the stock. Now, it can have a dramatic effect on the psychology of the people who want to buy the stock. That’s a better way to put it.”
DexCom, Inc. (NASDAQ:DXCM) develops and sells continuous glucose monitoring systems to help patients and clinicians manage diabetes and metabolic health. Sands Capital stated the following regarding DexCom, Inc. (NASDAQ:DXCM) in its third quarter 2025 investor letter:
“DexCom, Inc. (NASDAQ:DXCM) is a leading producer of glucose monitors for diabetes management. Shares declined during the quarter, pressured by broader weakness in the medical devices industry and heightened FDA and customer scrutiny of product reliability. Despite these external pressures, Dexcom continues to execute well following its mid-2024 operational challenges. The second quarter marked its third straight quarter of accelerating year over-year revenue growth, supported by near-record new patient additions. While management raised 2025 revenue guidance, the increase was more cautious than consensus expected, disappointing investors. We believe this conservative stance creates room for upside in the second half of 2025. Dexcom ended the quarter trading near its all-time low forward earnings multiple, which we view as a disconnect from its growth outlook. Potential catalysts include strong adoption of its newly launched 15 day sensor, expanded Medicare coverage for type-2 non insulin patients, and clarity on the company’s long-range plan. We expect margin leverage from the 15-day sensor should also contribute meaningfully to profitability in 2026.”
8. AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 25
AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS) is one of the stocks on Jim Cramer’s radar recently. A caller asked Cramer about his latest take on the company, and he stated:
“The space stocks are plain and simple specs. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t buy it. As I say in my book, you should buy one. This may be the one to buy. I’m not against it, but you have to understand that if it goes down, it’s speculative, you could lose a lot of money.”
AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS) builds and operates the BlueBird satellite network. The company delivers space-based cellular broadband that connects directly to standard smartphones. During the October 22 episode, Cramer called it an “intriguing cellular broadband play,” as he remarked:
“Now, here’s a stock that though it’s up more than 200% for the year, it’s at $71 and change, it’s still down more than 30 points from its high just six days ago. I’ve been warning people that you have to start bailing when you see big financings like we had at the end of the dot-com era. Sure enough, AST SpaceMobile, an intriguing cellular broadband play, just offered $1 billion in convertible notes and 2 million shares at $78 and change. It’s lost money for the last five years, with a $677 million in negative free cash flow for the last 12 months. I say no, thank you.”
7. The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 21
The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) is one of the stocks on Jim Cramer’s radar recently. During the lightning round, a caller inquired about the stock, and Cramer replied:
“I’ve liked BNS from the first time I was in the Caribbean. I said, boy, these guys just own the Caribbean. It’s a very good company. It yields 4%.”
The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) provides banking, lending, and investment services. The company also offers wealth management, insurance, and financial advisory solutions. It reported its Q4 2025 earnings on December 2, posting a non-GAAP EPS of C$1.93, outperforming estimates by C$0.09. The company generated a revenue of C$9.8 billion, which was up 15% year-over-year and beat the estimates by C$380 million.
For the full year, The Bank of Nova Scotia (NYSE:BNS) reported a net income of $7.758 billion, compared to $7.892 billion in the prior year. The company’s adjusted net income was $9.510 billion, compared to $8.627 billion in 2024. Its revenue was $37.741 billion for the year, compared to $33.670 billion in 2024.
6. Strategy Inc (NASDAQ:MSTR)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 43
Strategy Inc (NASDAQ:MSTR) is one of the stocks on Jim Cramer’s radar recently. A caller asked Cramer’s one-year performance projection for the stock, and here’s what he had to say:
“Well, look, let’s leave it like this, they call it now Strategy, but I like Bitcoin and I think you should just own Bitcoin. I don’t want any derivative of Bitcoin. I just want Bitcoin.”
Strategy Inc (NASDAQ:MSTR) provides investors with exposure to Bitcoin through a mix of equity and fixed-income securities. In addition, the company offers AI tools that help businesses understand their data and make better decisions. Cramer mentioned the company during the December 2 episode and said:
“In this business, nothing’s harder than spotting bottoms… What matters the most here is not Bitcoin itself, but a company called Strategy run by Michael Saylor, a Bitcoin evangelist who’s adopted what I consider to be a Malcolm X style by any means necessary approach to keep Bitcoin higher. He has a huge amount of money on the line because Strategy has transformed itself basically into a Bitcoin accumulation machine fueled by borrowed money.
Saylor’s a clever guy, and he may be able to forestall the executioner, in which case we’re at the bottom. But if Strategy’s still in trouble, then the company might be forced to sell the largest Bitcoin hoard in the world, at least some of which would produce a furious crescendo of selling. In that case, who knows, maybe Bitcoin goes to $60,000. But the operative and problematic term in that sentence is who knows. When you’re fishing for a bottom, who knows doesn’t cut it.”
5. Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE:WY)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 29
Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE:WY) is one of the stocks on Jim Cramer’s radar recently. Cramer noted the company’s investor meeting and the long-term forecast for 2030, as he remarked:
“Earlier today, we got an update from Weyerhaeuser, it’s the largest private owner of timberlands in North America, at its investor meeting, where management laid out an optimistic long-term forecast for 2030. Unfortunately, Weyerhaeuser’s largest business is wood products, and somehow it’s still joint at the hip with the American housing market, and that has not been a great place to be in 2025. I tell you that a lot, and that’s why the stock’s down nearly 18% for the year. But with the Fed putting through a 25 basis point rate cut yesterday, there’s a real chance mortgage rates might start coming down, which would really make the stock go higher.”
Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE:WY) is one of the largest private owners of timberlands in the world, as it manages sustainable timberlands and produces wood products. In addition, it operates in real estate, energy, and resource solutions. Baron Real Estate Income Fund stated the following regarding Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE:WY) in its second quarter 2025 investor letter:
“During the quarter, we decided to exit our position in Weyerhaeuser Company (NYSE:WY). While shares have continued to trade at a significant discount to NAV, a softer-than-expected residential housing market this year resulted in a weak demand environment, which ultimately weighed on lumber and other wood products prices. As we wrote in our prior quarterly letter, Weyerhaeuser typically tracks the price of lumber, so soft demand and lower wood products prices can have a negative impact on the business and on the stock. We plan to continue monitoring the business and will potentially re-engage at the appropriate time.”
4. Shake Shack Inc. (NYSE:SHAK)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 33
Shake Shack Inc. (NYSE:SHAK) is one of the stocks on Jim Cramer’s radar recently. A caller asked about the stock, and here’s what Mad Money’s host had to say:
“Okay, this is such a great question. Now, you have to understand that Rob Lynch is doing a remarkable job, and he’s a great CEO. Here’s the problem: this stock is trading with the price of beef and cattle, went up and up and up. I think the president’s going to try to bring cattle down. I think that means you buy Shake Shack. I think it doesn’t matter where a stock comes from, it matters where it’s going to. I would never bet against Rob Lynch. I think that you buy Shake Shack at $79 a share.”
Shake Shack Inc. (NYSE:SHAK) operates and licenses a chain of restaurants that serve burgers, chicken, hot dogs, fries, shakes, frozen custard, and beverages. Cramer highlighted the company’s top and bottom-line beat during the October 30 episode, as he commented:
“Is the Shack back? Over the past few months, we’ve seen some big pullbacks in the restaurant space, including high-quality operators like Shake Shack, which you know I love. When these guys reported at the end of July, results were a little less than perfect, and the stock plunged from $140 and change to just under $90 as of last night’s close. But this morning, Shake Shack reported a solid quarter with better-than-expected same shack sales, a solid revenue beat, and a 5-cent earnings beat off a 31-cent basis. That’s huge. While the guidance for the current quarter wasn’t necessarily perfect, it was good enough to let the stock rally almost 2% today in a restaurant chain group that is just awful.”
3. The Magnum Ice Cream Company N.V. (NYSE:MICC)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: N/A
The Magnum Ice Cream Company N.V. (NYSE:MICC) is one of the stocks on Jim Cramer’s radar recently. Cramer said that the company has “already started turning around,” as he stated:
“Unilever didn’t seem to want it, but maybe it’ll be worth more as an independent company. I’m optimistic. I’m going to tell you why. First, The Magnum Ice Cream Company is by far the largest player in the industry… Put it all together, and The Magnum Ice Cream Company has 21% global market share… This company has already started turning around, with organic volume growth going positive again, up 1.1% while organic sales are up 2.8. Remember, they were down. The company’s gross margin improved for the first time in years. I’m thinking this thing might be a gem… It seems like the company’s trending in the right direction, though. Everybody in the snack food space lives in fear of Ozempic, yet Magnum Ice Cream’s putting up solid sales and volume growth. So, clearly they’re not being hurt too badly… At the end of the day, Magnum’s simply not suffering very much from the rise of the GLPs… You’re talking about a stock that’s selling for roughly 12 to 13 times earnings. Now, let’s think about this… This is not bad…
Still, the stock’s trading at a pretty sizable discount to its peers. So, if you want to bet on the ice cream business, you got my blessing to do some buying right here. I love an IPO that comes out and doesn’t shoot up to the sky, and then everybody gets hurt. I like one that’s not on anybody’s radar screen. That’s this deal.
Here’s the bottom line: We finally, by the grace of God or at least the grace of Unilever, have a pure play ice cream stock now that The Magnum Ice Cream Company has been spun off and started trading independently. And after taking a closer look at the story, I have to say, this one’s pretty sweet… And may I also say, apropos of How to Make Money in Any Market… If you want to give a share… to a kid of a stock and you want them to follow it, I’m thinking it’s this one. I used to think it’s Disney. This one has more upside.”
The Magnum Ice Cream Company N.V. (NYSE:MICC) is a multinational ice cream and frozen dessert company that controls a major chunk of the industry.
2. Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 44
Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL) is one of the stocks on Jim Cramer’s radar recently. When a caller mentioned that ODFL looks like “an interesting stock to play”, Cramer replied:
“I agree with you. I agree with you. I do. Now, just so you know, I like Old Dominion. I really, really, really like J.B. Hunt, but my favorite is Federal Express, FedEx.”
Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL) provides less-than-truckload shipping and fast delivery services, along with supply chain solutions and fleet maintenance. PBCM Concentrated Value Strategy stated the following regarding Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL) in its third quarter 2025 investor letter:
“We replaced Kinsale with Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL), the undisputed leader in the Less-Than-Truckload (LTL) freight market.
The trucking industry is notoriously competitive and prone to cyclicality. Despite this, over the last three decades, ODFL has built a business with significant competitive advantages protected by real moats.
While most peers struggle to generate a profit, ODFL maintains 20% operating margins and a high 20%+ return on invested capital (ROIC), all while keeping a net cash balance sheet. More importantly, the company is known as the only consistently reliable player in the LTL industry, which allows it to charge a premium price for its service.
This higher pricing power gives ODFL the ability to invest more than peers in its network infrastructure across the economic cycle, including during down markets when other trucking companies must cut capital spending. This willingness and ability to invest through the cycle is the critical differentiator between ODFL and its competition…” (Click here to read the full text)
1. Toll Brothers, Inc. (NYSE:TOL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 51
Toll Brothers, Inc. (NYSE:TOL) is one of the stocks on Jim Cramer’s radar recently. A caller was bullish on the stock during the episode, and Cramer commented:
“Oh, you’re so right. Look, that’s exactly what you buy here. I think Toll is doing phenomenally. You know, look, the only thing that was bad was that he said, look, if rates don’t come down, we’re not going to have good numbers. Well, guess what? Rates are coming down. I totally agree with Robert (the caller).”
Toll Brothers, Inc. (NYSE:TOL) builds luxury homes and communities, including single-family houses, condos, and apartments, often with several amenities. During the December 10 episode, Cramer discussed the stock in light of the Fed rate cut, as he remarked:
“Let me tell you the three things that really do matter. One, the Fed is our friend, not our enemy. Two, the bulls aren’t fighting the tape. And three, longer-term rates fell in response to the rate cut. It’s a trifecta that allows the stock market to roar. What do you do in this situation? Well, you buy stocks that do better when rates are lower, even a quarter point lower. That means you buy the home builders and you buy the retailers that are connected to the home builders. You go with the ones that we’ve recently heard from. That means you buy Toll Brothers, which just reported a terrific quarter, but the forecast wasn’t as positive. That means, well, the narrative could change, right?… They worried about a negative future, well, maybe it’s a little more positive.”
While we acknowledge the potential of Toll Brothers, Inc. (NYSE:TOL) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than TOL and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires.
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