On Tuesday’s episode of Mad Money, Jim Cramer discussed how stock ownership is viewed in the United States.
“Alright, look, lately, we can’t go a day without hearing some widespread misperceptions about stock ownership. I gotta tell you, I think it’s infuriating. Here we are celebrating the 20th anniversary of Mad Money, dedicated to the proposition that you can potentially make lots of money by picking individual stocks, yet I keep hearing that most Americans don’t care about the stock market, and this direction means nothing.”
READ ALSO: Jim Cramer Listed 20 Best Performing Stocks of the Last 20 Years and Jim Cramer Recently Discussed These 9 Stocks.
Cramer pushed back against the notion that only the wealthy care about or benefit from the stock market. He argued that the perception is not only wrong but dismissive of the millions of everyday people with financial stakes in the market. Moving on to stock ownership, he mentioned that, “It’s the whole reason anyone watches the darn show, and it generally matters, not just to the rich, but to tens of millions of regular people, home gamers, and never let any politician tell you otherwise.” He added:
“More than 60% of Americans have some exposure to the market, either directly or indirectly. 70 million people have active 401Ks. Millions more have retired with them. 60 million people have IRAs. Only 156 million people voted in November. I mean, we’re talking half the electorate here.”
Cramer insisted that shareholders form a significant constituency in this country and deserve to be recognized as such. He mentioned that “It’s not just arrogant, rich people who own stocks.” He also criticized wealthy individuals who publicly warn others about the risks of stock investing while still taking advantage of its tax benefits themselves. He added:
“Now look, stocks are ridiculously tax advantaged, more than just rich people want that. In a world where probably no more than 10% of this country can retire on their paycheck savings, stocks represent a different kind of social security, a one-sided pack where people try to save and the government dismisses them.”
Our Methodology
For this article, we compiled a list of 8 stocks that were discussed by Jim Cramer during the episode of Mad Money aired on April 29. We listed the stocks in ascending order of their hedge fund sentiment as of the fourth quarter of 2024, which was taken from Insider Monkey’s database of over 1,000 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 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
8 Stocks on Jim Cramer’s Radar Recently
8. Dillard’s, Inc. (NYSE:DDS)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 23
A caller asked Cramer’s thoughts on Dillard’s, Inc. (NYSE:DDS), and he remarked:
“Now, I mean, and we’re in a world now where you really are going to make money in Amazon, in TJX, okay, you’ll make money in Walmart, and you’re going to be struggling to make money in any other retailer other than Costco. I don’t think Dillard’s is a place to be.”
Dillard’s (NYSE:DDS) runs department stores and an online platform that sells clothing, cosmetics, home items, and other consumer goods. The company also handles construction projects related to building and renovating its own stores.
It is worth noting that Cramer was similarly bearish on Dillard’s (NYSE:DDS) back in 2008 when he commented:
“No, no, no, no. That one is way too speculative. They have let their stores go and I don’t want to touch it.”
7. Nextracker Inc. (NASDAQ:NXT)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 41
A caller asked Cramer about Nextracker Inc. (NASDAQ:NXT), and in response, he said:
“Okay, I do believe, look, it had a good quarter. I did think that the president did not really care for wind, but this kind, he doesn’t mind this. This is technology all made in America, so I think you’re okay. Not great, not bad.”
Nextracker (NASDAQ:NXT) provides energy solutions focused on solar tracking and software systems. The company’s technology is built for large-scale and distributed solar projects in the U.S. and other countries. In January, appearing on Squawk on the Street, Cramer said:
“Charitable trust owns a company called Nextracker. We’ve actually done some selling, the stock is up huge. They make software that make it so that we get, you get more Sun. Uh you can shift the panels, which means, you know for instance, Germany, they only have 27% days that are sunny. But you can augment your solar with this software.”
6. Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 45
Answering a caller’s inquiry about Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK), Cramer commented:
“Well, look, first of all, it’s really well run, so don’t take this the wrong way, but the airlines are wrong to own right here because people think we’re going into a travel recession. I think you’d still go lower.”
Alaska Air Group (NYSE:ALK) offers airline services using Boeing jet aircraft for passenger and cargo transportation. Its subsidiaries include Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Holdings, Inc., Horizon Air, and McGee Air Services. Diamond Hill Capital stated the following regarding Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK) in its Q4 2024 investor letter:
“Other top contributors in Q4 included Alaska Air Group, Inc. (NYSE:ALK), Webster Financial and Liberty Media-Formula One. Shares of regional airline Alaska Air rose in the quarter as management provided more details about the company’s recent acquisition of Hawaiian Airlines, which investors received positively.”
5. CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 47
CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA) was mentioned during the episode, and here’s what Cramer had to say about it:
“I like it here. I like it here for the long term. Why? Because I think the Mediterranean is a kind of food that can be like Chipotle, it can be the previous, you know, just the way Chipotle had a big run. I think Cava can too.”
CAVA (NYSE:CAVA) manages a growing chain of restaurants that serve Mediterranean-style food across the country. In March, Cramer extensively commented on the company as he said:
“Cava started out real hot but then had a multi-month cool-off period. I started recommending it in the low $30s back in November of 2023 after Cava’s Chairman Ron Shaich, formerly of Panera Bread, convinced me that it had the potential to be the next big thing in casual dining. Now this stock then marched steadily higher through most of last year, ultimately peaking at $172 last November. That was after Cava reported a tremendous quarter and its shares shot up 19% intraday before pulling back and finishing up less than 2%.
… I never recommended this stock because I thought it was cheap though, I like Cava because I think it’s an excellent long-term, what we call, regional to national story… Their stores are doing very well and they’ve got a ton of room to expand from a regional to national player… I don’t see any signs of the concept losing momentum. When Cava reported its latest quarter, it delivered 21% same-store sales growth, for heaven’s sake. Now that the stock’s down 55% from its highs, you got my blessing to start buying Monday and if it keeps falling, you know what you should do? Buy more.”
4. Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NYSE:KMB)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 50
A caller asked about Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NYSE:KMB) in light of tariff uncertainty. Here’s what Mad Money’s host had to say:
“Alright, yields 3.8, I think you go down to 4.5% because right now, that’s the operative level. They did not make the quarter. I was a little bummed out. Let’s wait till it goes lower.”
Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) manufactures personal care and tissue products. The company provides disposable hygiene items, facial tissues, paper towels, and hygiene solutions for commercial use. On April 17, Cramer said:
“People love the soft goods today. They like Procter & Gamble and Colgate, right? I say take a look at Kimberly-Clark. It’s really gotten its act together under CEO Mike Hsu. I don’t think people realize that. They ought to.”
3. Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 51
While mentioning that the stock might be undervalued, a caller inquired about Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF). Here’s what Cramer had to say:
“You know what, I’ve got to see what they look like in a tariffed world… because I don’t know exactly how much of their stuff is going to have to go up in price. The stock is reflecting a lot of that, but you’re right, it’s six times earnings. But you and I both know six times earnings means usually that the earnings are too high. But it’s 65 bucks, $3.3 billion company. I think you can pick up a little, but then wait.”
Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) is a retail company that sells clothing, accessories, and personal care products through different channels. The company offers its items under brand names like Abercrombie & Fitch, abercrombie kids, Hollister, and Gilly Hicks. Earlier in March, on Squawk on the Street, Cramer commented:
“I thought Abercrombie, it had some good things to say, but overall they didn’t… We are Carl, without a doubt, getting to this moment where you have for retail, I don’t wanna call it existential, but you do have a situation where they had a good quarter but they can’t assess the tariffs. They can’t assess the weakness. They’re all worried about, jobs. And Abercombie and Fitch, by the way, is a very, very good company. Very good company. Reports a quarter that looks okay if you read everything you’d say okay but little, little worried about what’s going to happen with tariffs. And people just take it out and they shoot it. Now one of these like, you know, Best Buy yesterday’s guide, they have 60% China 20% Mexico so we get that. But this is a good company that was on a huge winning streak but now it’s so despised. When you mention to me what could happen down the road after the President’s done with this part of the agenda. You know you look at this and you’ll say how did that get there. But right now you just can’t look at it. You just say, I can’t buy Abercrombie. And it’s rather amazing because boy they were on a hot streak… And a lot of people felt that last dip was buyable and that was clearly not the case.”
2. Okta, Inc. (NASDAQ:OKTA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 72
When a caller inquired about Okta, Inc. (NASDAQ:OKTA), Cramer said:
“I think Okta is terrific. It’s one of the greatest companies. I tell you, anybody who works there has a great time, and they have done remarkable things. And Todd McKinnon is terrific, and so is cybersecurity…. This one is a winner. I’m going to give you a twofer… CrowdStrike and Palo Alto Networks, they’re all terrific.”
Okta (NASDAQ:OKTA) provides a range of identity and access management tools that help organizations securely manage user identities and control access to applications, devices, and data. The company’s products focus on authentication, user lifecycle management, governance, and protection against security threats. On April 23, Roth Capital started coverage of OKTA with a Buy rating and a $119 price target.
The analyst noted that the company is a leader in Identity and Access Management, Identity Governance and Administration, and Privileged Access Management. Although Okta (NASDAQ:OKTA) faced several challenges, including problems in sales execution and security breaches, the analyst believes these setbacks are fading and expects Okta’s momentum to strengthen.
1. CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 77
A caller asked what Cramer thought of CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD) long-term. He replied:
“Okay, I think for the long term, it’s terrific. We had to take some profits out of it, too, because it just got too big. But I think George Kurtz is delivering an amazing product, and I think he’s got a lot to say, given his speech tonight. I think that CrowdStrike is terrific.”
CrowdStrike (NASDAQ:CRWD) is a cybersecurity company known for its Falcon platform. The platform offers a range of tools focused on endpoint protection. Aristotle Atlantic Partners, LLC stated the following regarding CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD) in its Q1 2025 investor letter:
“CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD) provides cybersecurity products and services that offer endpoint protection and threat intelligence solutions, enabling customers to prevent damage from targeted attacks, detect advanced malware and search all endpoints. The company’s open cloud architecture enables it and third-party partners to rapidly innovate, build and deploy new cloud modules that can provide customers with enhanced functionality across a myriad of use cases.
We see the cloud cybersecurity market as positioned to experience strong growth over the next few years, driven by continued migration from on-premises to cloud-based architecture. We believe CrowdStrike can benefit from this trend due to its early-mover advantage, multiple product offerings and native integrations with leading cloud platforms. The increasing threats from state-sanctioned cybercriminals using high-performance computing and AI necessitate higher spending on advanced cybersecurity products. The total addressable market (TAM) is projected to grow significantly over the next four calendar years. Additionally, CrowdStrike’s cloud-native architecture and unified platform approach provide competitive advantages, resulting in high customer retention and widespread adoption of multiple modules.”
While we acknowledge the potential of CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CRWD) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter time frame. There is an AI stock that went up since the beginning of 2025, while popular AI stocks lost around 25%. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than CRWD but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, 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.
Disclosure: None. Insider Monkey focuses on uncovering the best investment ideas of hedge funds and insiders. Please subscribe to our free daily e-newsletter to get the latest investment ideas from hedge funds’ investor letters by entering your email address below.
