On Monday, Mad Money host Jim Cramer drew a parallel to 2011 and argued that what we are seeing is another crisis that feels manufactured, one he believes could be resolved just as easily as it was created, “with the stroke of a pen,” as he described it.
“Could this be another earnings season that simply doesn’t matter because there are bigger forces at work that are going to crush the entire market? It’s happened before, back in 2011.”
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Cramer pointed out that the market has opened lower nearly every day, not because of disappointing earnings, those, he said, have largely held up, except in the case of companies with significant exposure to China, which he described as now being a liability for American businesses. He emphasized that the situation is not being driven by corporate fundamentals but by factors outside of earnings. He added:
“At least this time, the problem’s about America itself. As the president begins to create a constitutional crisis over the potential firing of Jay Powell while Congress once again deals with the interminable debt crisis, I think we can expect another ratings agency to begin the discussion of a debt downgrade.”
According to Cramer, investors should begin to accept the reality of a market that drops every morning, regardless of how strong earnings might be. The dominant forces in the environment, he insisted, are not balance sheets or profit margins. He remarked that the current period will be shaped by discussions around tariffs and the ongoing threats to remove Jerome Powell from his position. He added:
“Unfortunately, this time, the United States is not a safe haven as other countries appear much more stable and our bonds act squirrelly, almost as if they’re anticipating another painful debt downgrade. Ironic. We could get much higher yields because a president wants them to be lower in the worst way. The worst way being to poke fun, to ride, chide, and make life hell for a man who has served our country well, and I think deserves better.”
Our Methodology
For this article, we compiled a list of 9 stocks that were discussed by Jim Cramer during the episode of Mad Money aired on April 21. 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).
9 Stocks on Jim Cramer’s Radar
9. Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. (NASDAQ:PAA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 9
A caller inquired if Cramer was still feeling positive about Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. (NASDAQ:PAA). In response, Cramer stated:
“You know, [to] my understanding, Plains PAA is doing quite well. I mean, it’s a very tough moment for this group. There’s a lot of sellers in it, but I understand that Plains is okay. I mean, I don’t know, I’m going to redouble my efforts because it is a little higher yield than it should be.”
Plains All American Pipeline (NASDAQ:PAA) focuses on the transportation, storage, gathering, and terminaling of crude oil and natural gas liquids. The company is also involved in processing and handling various products derived from natural gas and crude oil refining. It is worth noting that when Cramer was asked about the company in March, he said:
“Listen, sunshine, that’s a terrific stock with a 78% yield. Not only am I a buyer, but I wish we had it for the Charitable Trust.”
8. Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. (NYSE:SWK)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 34
A caller asked if they can build a safe dividend stream with Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. (NYSE:SWK). In response, Cramer said:
“Well, it’s interesting to say that, you know, I’ve been writing this book, it’s actually done now… and what’s incredible is that I was going to have this as an accidental high yielder and at the last minute I pulled it. Why? Because I don’t have the kind of security mentally to be able to do that. I think there are too many problems with the company. We had Mr. Allan on the show, he was talking about a 2027 game plan. So you cannot recommend something for its dividend if you don’t think the dividend is totally safe, and that’s what I worry about with Stanley Black & Decker. Ouch.”
Stanley Black & Decker (NYSE:SWK) is a leading manufacturer that focuses on producing power tools, hand tools, outdoor equipment, and related accessories.