Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer – October 29, 2025

Host: Jim Cramer
Podcast: Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer (CNBC)
Episode Date: October 29, 2025

Episode Overview

In this energetic and insightful episode, Jim Cramer dissects the latest market updates, focusing on how the Federal Reserve’s rate cut impacts the “real economy” and the ongoing transformation brought by artificial intelligence (AI). He reviews recent mega-cap tech earnings (Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft), spotlights the importance of visionary corporate strategies, and delivers in-depth interviews with the CEOs of ServiceNow, Brinker International, and Otis Worldwide. The episode wraps with Cramer’s trademark Lightning Round, providing fast-paced stock advice, and a passionate conclusion on wise speculation in today’s AI-driven market.

Table of Contents

• Market Recap & AI Angst (01:42)
• Tech Titans' Earnings: Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft (03:00)
• Advice for the Real Economy: Caterpillar vs. Generac (06:30)
• Viewer Calls: American Express, Klarna, DraftKings (09:02)
• Feature Interview: Bill McDermott, ServiceNow (15:42)
• Feature Interview: Kevin Hockman, Brinker (Chili's) (25:11)
• Feature Interview: Judy Marks, Otis Worldwide (31:28)
• Lightning Round (39:14)
• Final Thoughts: On Speculation and Skepticism (42:57)

Market Recap & AI Angst (01:42)

• Fed Rate Cut Impact

  • The Federal Reserve cut rates by a quarter point, lowering short-term borrowing costs.
  • While helpful, “the sudden circumspect attitude” from Fed Chair Jay Powell (about not cutting again soon) weighed on the averages: Dow down, S&P “minimally down”, Nasdaq up 0.5% but off its highs.
  • Cramer outlines consumer hesitancy: “It was the help [the regular economy] needed… The consumer seems to be balking at larger purchases, vacations, even steak dinners because they fear they might lose their jobs and costs have gone up so much because of inflation.” (03:00)

• AI Layoff Anxiety

  • Jobs anxiety persists despite a low unemployment rate, driven by fears of AI.
  • “The epicenter of the worry ... is the $5 trillion Nvidia, one of my two favorite stocks, as you know, along with Apple ... The angst seems shorter term avoidable, but only if the people at the top of your company recognize that Nvidia simply is an intellectual engine that makes you more productive, smarter, thinking better so you can go create things at an even lower cost than before the revolution.” (03:50)
  • Cramer references Alex Karp (Palantir CEO) on people “being left behind by AI; but they shouldn’t be left behind if they could heed the thunder and do the pivot.”

Tech Titans' Earnings: Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft (03:00)

Alphabet (Google)

• Blowout Quarter:
  • Revenue growth accelerated for the third straight quarter (up 16%).
  • Earnings: $2.87 per share vs. $2.27 expected.
  • Google Cloud revenue beat estimates (up 34%).
  • “Alphabet shot the lights out ... and that stock is flying after hours. ... It’s going to be the star, the benchmark for these stocks.” (05:15)
• AI Integration:
  • Gemini generative AI platform “doing terrific” after a rough start.
  • Capital expenditures in line; manageable fines (European $3.5B one-time charge).

Meta (Facebook)

• Mixed Results:
  • Revenue above expectations, but a “colossal” one-time tax hit clouded earnings.
  • Without the tax hit, EPS would have exceeded estimates.
  • Raised full-year revenue forecast and capex, but capex raised by even more.
  • “The stock got clobbered after hours, it was up too much.” (06:50)

Microsoft

• Solid Beat:
  • “Truly strong quarter: top and bottom line beat.”
  • Azure cloud growth “excited to 40%.”
  • Stock still dipped after hours because “it came in too hot” after gains earlier in the week (due to the OpenAI stake).
  • “If it hadn’t already run, Wall Street would have been fine. More to come later tonight for club members.” (07:45)

Notable Quote

“Alphabet shot the lights out ... It’s going to be the star, the benchmark for these stocks.”
— Jim Cramer (05:15)

Advice for the Real Economy: Caterpillar vs. Generac (06:30)

• Caterpillar (CAT):
  • Stock leapt 11% after emphasizing turbines and power equipment, feeding the booming data center economy.
  • Cramer credits past CAT CEO Jim Umpleby for “turning a perennially cyclical boom and bust into a secular growth story.”
• Generac:
  • Suffered due to insufficient commitment to data centers—“didn’t bet big enough.”
• Lesson:
  • “A quarter point rate cut won’t make enough difference if you have the wrong strategy or if you’re late to a better one.” (08:35)
• Bottom Line:
  • “Best performing companies in the real economy are the ones that also have a ton of exposure to the data center economy.” (08:51)

Viewer Calls: American Express, Klarna, DraftKings (09:02)

• On American Express/Klarna Swap:
  • Caller (“Ty in Arizona”) asks if should swap AmEx (led by CEO Squeri) for Klarna.
  • Cramer: “No, I won’t let you do that. I don’t think Squeri’s in over his head at all. ... He’s a genius. ... Klarna's fine, but Squeri, let’s just say he’s figured it out.” (10:03)
• On DraftKings:
  • Caller frustrated by short-term weakness.
  • Cramer: “I happen to like DraftKings very much. ... If they get Texas, Florida, and California, wow, it’ll be terrific.” (11:15)
  • He expresses confidence in CEO Jason Robins, brushes off broader gambling industry fraud worries.

Feature Interview: Bill McDermott, ServiceNow (15:42)

ServiceNow stock has dropped 24% from all-time highs, but strong Q3 numbers and raised forecasts signal optimism.

The AI-Powered Workflow Revolution

• ServiceNow up 22% revenue, 56-cent earnings beat.

• McDermott introduces “Super 8”:

  • “You might have the Super 8. You have to add ServiceNow in there. ... Customers today obviously want to leverage AI… There’s only one AI platform for business transformation that connects to all the clouds, language models, and data sources—ServiceNow.” (16:20)

• Major Deals:

  • “103 deals north of $1 million in net new revenue … 6 were above $10 million, 3 above $20 million.” (17:17)
  • Cites NHL (“Home Ice”), Ulta Beauty, AstraZeneca, FedEx as examples of AI-powered business transformations.

• Refuting ‘AI eats software’ thesis:

  • “Doesn’t work like that, Jim. … We’re not just a consumer AI company ... Enterprise AI is a lot harder than consumer AI.”
  • Cites regulatory, security, complex legacy integration advantages. (19:30)

• Stock Split for Retail Investors:

  • Announces a 5-for-1 stock split “so a young investor ... can buy many shares ... and participate in this great growth story.”
  • “We’re only getting started. ... The only enterprise software company in the world to grow at a 50 plus gym, but we’ve been doing it for a decade straight.” (22:44)

Notable Quotes

“You might have the Super 8. You have to add ServiceNow in there.”
— Bill McDermott (16:11)

“Enterprise AI is a lot harder than consumer AI ... it’s a cross functional sport, Jim.”
— Bill McDermott (20:00)

Feature Interview: Kevin Hockman, Brinker (Chili's) (25:11)

• Stock Down Despite Strong Quarter

  • Despite Chili’s “plus 21% on sales, 13% on traffic,” stock fell; Cramer calls this “Wall Street saying, What have you done for me lately?”
  • Hockman: “We had a phenomenal quarter ... obviously expectations are even higher ... it does give our team the challenge to continue to deliver.” (25:31)

• Tariffs/Inflation:

  • Tariffs on beef/shrimp and macro uncertainty are holding back guidance raises.

• Growth in Low-Income Segment:

  • “Chili’s fastest growing income cohort is now households with income under $60,000 ... we actually grew faster.” (27:49)
  • “We’re winning market share ... we’ve spent the last two years hammering $10.99, improving service levels, upgrading the food ... That’s why we’re winning with the low income consumer.” (28:13)

• Social Media & Menu Changes:

  • Admits backlash over queso change, but listens and plans to bring back old queso in December.

• Maggiano’s Turnaround:

  • Sees potential but likely a longer-term play; confident it won’t distract from Chili’s.

Notable Quotes

“What more can you do?”
— Jim Cramer (25:13)

“If skilla kids is a part of that to keep them coming back, we’re going to bring it back, and it should be back sometime in December.”
— Kevin Hockman (29:21)

Feature Interview: Judy Marks, Otis Worldwide (31:28)

• Steady Growth Post-Earnings
  • Recent earnings: slight revenue beat, 5-cent EPS beat; raised full-year outlook.
  • Most profits come from maintenance/service, providing stability.
• Modernization & AI Integration
  • “Our modernization business ... up 27% this quarter with 14% organic sales. ... 8 million elevators globally over 20 years old and needing modernization.” (33:02)
  • Examples: “89 elevators/escalators at the new JPMorgan HQ, using AI to dispatch elevators for efficiency.”
• Strong US/Global Demand
  • “New equipment orders up for the 5th straight quarter in US/Canada … construction delivery challenges have eased.”
  • China: smaller % of revenue now, but seeing stabilization.
• Aggressive Share Buybacks
  • “Dividend up 8% ... $250 million of stock buybacks this quarter—accelerated because the stock was low.”
  • “Service business is so solid. ... It’s going to get us to 2030 and way beyond.” (38:11)

Notable Quotes

“Our business is pervasive and almost ubiquitous. With 2.4 billion people a day using our product, that means they need to be safe, reliable, and modernized.”
— Judy Marks (32:28)

Lightning Round (39:14)

Rapid-fire viewer Q&A:

• Energy Transfer (ET): “I like energy transfer very much. ... Enterprise Product Partners is the one I do recommend ... But Energy Transfer is an excellent company.” (40:10)
• Toast: Cramer likes the company: “Doing well ... would be a buyer but only after they report on November 4th.” (40:26)
• DVELT (speculative): Advice: “Take off a little, let the rest run ... so you can’t lose money.” (41:27)
• SealsQ (LAES): “Not gonna opine ... I will be a professional by the next time you talk about it.”
• Classic Cramer moment: A 9-year-old investor calls in about Toast; “That kid’s got horse sense!” (40:28)

Final Thoughts: On Speculation and Skepticism (42:57)

• Cramer’s Take on the AI/Data Center Boom:
  • Frustrated with "bubble talk" around AI/data centers—“the rise of both AI and accelerated computing are two of the biggest developments of my lifetime. ... To think that they have somehow already peaked is downright fatuous.”
• Skepticism vs. Opportunity Analogy:
  • Compares skepticism about AI/data centers to seeing a magician’s trick—sometimes it’s better to “bask in wonder” than demand to see how the trick works.
  • Highlights Cameco (uranium) and Bloom Energy as stocks that skeptics doubted, but which delivered huge gains due to surging data center power needs.
  • Advocates for calculated speculation, up to 10% of a portfolio in “the next Bloom, the next Cameco.”
• Iconic Cramer Quote:

  “I like to say there’s always a bull market somewhere. I promise I’d find it just for you right here on Mad Money.” (46:35)

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• “AI is a cross functional sport, Jim.” — Bill McDermott, ServiceNow (20:00)
• “We’re winning with the low income consumer ... comp[ing] the comp.” — Kevin Hockman, Brinker (28:13)
• “Our business is pervasive and almost ubiquitous ... 2.4 billion people a day using our product.” — Judy Marks, Otis (32:28)
• “I like to say there’s always a bull market somewhere. I promise I’d find it just for you right here on Mad Money.” — Jim Cramer (46:35)

Episode Highs:

• Clear, passionate breakdown of the AI-driven transformation reshaping both tech giants and “real economy” companies.
• Real-life application: How strategy, visionary leadership, and adaptability (Caterpillar, ServiceNow) produce outsized results.
• Practical, measured advice for investors wary of hype vs. opportunity.

For Listeners Who Haven’t Tuned In

This episode is a masterclass in combining market overview, actionable stock insights, and direct CEO commentary, all delivered in Cramer’s unmistakable, high-energy style. Whether you want to understand the implications of AI, tech earnings, or get quick takes on trending stocks, this episode is packed with clarity, quotable wisdom, and lively exchanges.