We recently published a list of Jim Cramer’s Latest Lightning Round: 7 Stocks in Focus. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Core Natural Resources, Inc. (NYSE:CNR) stands against other stocks in focus in Jim Cramer’s latest lightning round.

On Tuesday, Jim Cramer, host of Mad Money, spoke about the declining consumer confidence, which has been attributed to various factors, including tariffs, job losses, and other concerns.

“Big thing, this morning, the Conference Board’s consumer confidence index may be blanched. The expectations index based on consumer’s short-term outlook dropped 9.6 points to 65.2. That’s the lowest level in 12 years. You know it’s worse than Covid times?”

READ ALSO: Jim Cramer Recently Put These 10 Stocks Under Spotlight and Jim Cramer Recently Talked About These 5 Subscription Stocks

He explained that the index is now well below the critical 80 threshold, which typically signals a recession. It marks the fourth consecutive month of declining consumer confidence, a trend Cramer finds very concerning. While acknowledging the severity of the situation, Cramer also pointed out a silver lining: the Federal Reserve can see these numbers and might take action if necessary. However, he also noted that the Fed’s future moves have become less predictable.

“When I see these numbers though, I think maybe the Fed can’t afford to wait until they see how much inflation the tariffs cost. We simply don’t want a recession here if it’s avoidable, but let’s address the consumer confidence issue head-on.”

Cramer went on to highlight several reasons why consumer confidence is eroding. He explained that many people in the U.S. are concerned about the White House’s actions, including layoffs and partial government shutdowns, which are contributing to fears of job insecurity. He noted that people are worried not only about layoffs but also about automation taking over jobs. Furthermore, Cramer noted that people are also anxious about the tariffs. In particular, there has been a lack of clarity from the White House on the necessity of some tariffs, leaving the public uncertain about the long-term effects.

As consumer confidence continues to erode, Cramer warned that people start to retreat, cutting back on spending, staying home more, and avoiding activities that contribute to economic growth. Cramer said that this is evident in the struggles faced by major retail companies, which are suffering due to reduced consumer activity.

“Is there anything the President can do about this? I think it might be time that he actually talks to people in a calm way about how many jobs could be created by cracking down on our so-called trading partners. Time to bury the hatchet with Mexico and Canada too, and don’t bury it in the head of Mark Carney, the new Canadian Prime Minister.”

Our Methodology

For this article, we compiled a list of 7 stocks that were discussed by Jim Cramer during the episode of Mad Money aired on March 25. 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).

Core Natural Resources, Inc. (NYSE:CNR)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 39

A caller asked Cramer’s take on the coal industry and on Core Natural Resources, Inc. (NYSE:CNR). In response, Cramer said:

“You know… I was betting that coal could make a comeback only just because… that was in line with the president. But the prices for coal are so bad… That’s just another… you know, it’s a Pennsylvania coal company but there’s, there’s just not much to these stocks. I wish they could find a bottom, but they can’t. But I’m glad that you called about it.”

Core Natural Resources (NYSE:CNR) specializes in the production and sale of bituminous coal, mainly for use in power generation, industrial applications, and metallurgy. Additionally, the company provides coal export terminal services at the Port of Baltimore.

Black Bear Value Partners stated the following regarding Core Natural Resources, Inc. (NYSE:CNR) in its Q4 2024 investor letter:

“Core Natural Resources, Inc. (NYSE:CNR): Both ARCH and CEIX were down ~18% during the month of December as fears of retaliatory tariffs (these have a large export component to their businesses), economic slowing and likely tax-loss selling drove the stocks lower. Like our discussion on BLDR, the long-term story remains intact, and we used this as an opportunity to further concentrate our investment. Due to their impending merger neither Company can buy back their stock. Once the merger is complete in Q1 there should be abundant cash to buy back stock. I am generally constructive on the merger as the Companies should be able to realize some modest synergies. My sense is more mergers will be coming to this sector given the depressed prices of the securities.

ARCH is one of the leading U.S. producers of high-quality metallurgical coal (“met coal”). This is the kind of coal used for steelmaking. ARCH also has a thermal coal business that contributes ~20% of their earnings. CONSOL is a leading producer of thermal coal.

Met coal demand is projected to climb for the next 25 years, driven by the economic development and urbanization in India and the rest of Southeast Asia. ~60% of the world’s population lives in Asia, where met coal demand is centered and where local sources are limited. Over the coming years demand will likely outstrip supply, leading to higher prices. There has been a severe lack of investment in met coal due to ESG concerns with investment peaking in 2014…” (Click here to read the full text)

Overall, CNR ranks 4th on our list of stocks in focus in Jim Cramer’s latest lightning round. While we acknowledge the potential of CNR 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 timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than CNR but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.