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Jim Cramer
My mission is simple to make you money. I'm here to level the playing field for all investors. There's always a bull market somewhere and I promise to help you find it. Mad Money starts now. Hey, I'm Kramer. Welcome to Mad Money. Welcome to Kramerica. If you want to make friends, I'm just trying to make you a little money. My job is not just entertaining, but to put all this stuff in context. So call me 173 CNBC tweet me at Jim Cramer. We used to call days like today exquisite moments. Those are moments where the bears overreach and they get ahead of themselves because they don't know when to quit. We had one this very morning. I want to teach you how to spot them so you can pounce the next time this happens. These moments can yield big gains as the market opens incredibly weak and then kaboom. The average is reversed to finish up huge. Dow gaining 498 points today, S&P vaulting 1.09% and the Nasdaq jumping 1.03%. This exquisite moment that's now come and gone. But there will be others. You need to know when the next one could be coming first. These kinds of moments always start with a market that's deeply oversold. To spot that, I use the S and P oscillator by a company called Marketedge. This is a unique tool that shows when there's too much buying or Selling pressure. The oscillator starts at zero, which is a neutral zone. Either too hot or too cold. As it goes higher, we begin to get nervous that the market's being overbought. When the gets to plus five and say I, I want to buy some for the chapters, I don't, I just walk away at plus five, you are overreaching and the odds are no longer in your favor. So you probably won't get a good cost basis. And you could start a position in the hole.
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The house of pain.
Jim Cramer
When the outsider goes negative, it's actually the same story but in reverse. Once it touches minus five, you need to hold your nose and start buying, no matter how bad it looks. Because minus five means we're oversold and we're due for a bullish bounce. And when the odds goes below minus 8, as it did last night, the only thing you can do is buy hand over fast. Under no circumstances should you sell with the oscillator below minus 8, because at that point the selling ship has sail. The odds are against you. If you sell into an extremely oversold market, you might be selling right at the bottom. Now, I asked the good people marketed to run me the data on how you would have done if you buy at -8, and the results are extraordinary. If you buy The S&P 500 index, if the oscillator hits minus 8, you would have averaged a 2.88 gain within the next 30 days. That's over a 10 year period. We have this in the median up 4.7%. It is even better 60 days out. The average gain was 8.93% and the media was over 9%. Those are some huge moves. How about your eyes? Look 30 days after the oscillator hits minus 8, as it was last night, the market was up 70%. 60 days after, the market was up 80% of the time. That's an extraordinarily reliable pattern, people. Nothing in the market is a sure thing, of course, but the frequency of those gains means the odds are heavily in your favor if you buy in an oversold market. This time we anticipated the oscillator, which gets reported after the close on yesterday's investing club meeting, which was intraday, of course, at noon. And we put a lot of our reserves to work right into the weakness. It's why I keep emphasizing the club, because it's such an excellent complement to this show. If you were watching the oscillator, you knew we were due for a day like this. One second time with the exquisite Moment when you have a big decline on day one followed by an up opening and then another big decline on day two. Totally disheartening, right? I mean, just makes you want to cry. And then on day three, the market also opens down, down big. And that's when you have to have your shopping list ready. This was day three and that's what today's market was all about. Now you can use this method of buying to your own advantage, even with individual stocks. So let me give a textbook example of stock you'll know. Let's talk about Nvidia. Nvidia stock has been under huge pressure for weeks. It got hammered down to 128 and change on Wednesday. It opened strongly on Thursday at 131, but then kept going even higher. It reached about 134 and looked terrific. There was no positive research. It just looked terrific. In fact, we kept hearing the company was losing market share to Broadcom, Marvell Tech, even though they're partners and they don't even directly compete. But you know, I like Nvidia, but I had to tell people to stay away from that spike yesterday. Never buy a spike, no matter what. Next, you know the stock is down and actually gives them all those gains and going down hard. Finish the session back down at 130 and change a lot of disheartening people. Routine reversal. Oh, but today, today with a down opening, we got a very different story. When Nvidia opened deep in the red, that was your sign that it was time to buy, because that's the kind of action we're looking for. Sure enough, it ran like a rabbit today, right in the close. Exquisite. Next up, the assessment reason why we had a decline at the opening was the lack of budget agreement in Congress. Wall street never likes it when we seem to be headed toward a government shutdown. But people forget that no government shutdown has ever caused the stock market to stay down. Instead, they always produce viable moments. As I said this morning on Squawk on the street, sure, there's always a chance that this one could be different. Perhaps because, say, Elon Musk was involved. He isn't elected, so he's not really accountable to anyone. Again, though, when every previous government shutdown has produced a buying opportunity, you don't want to go against it. I think it's entirely possible that because the event is so telegraphed, all this selling occurs ahead of time. By the time the Fed start running out of money, that's already baked into the market and you have to buy. Next up you look at the proximate cause of the sell. In this case with the Fed's hawkish rate cut on Wednesday. That's what we've been calling it this. You need to recognize that the Fed, unlike most institutions, can have subtle do overs. You just need to send out some Fed government, put a better spin on things, make us understand there's no chaos out there. Sure enough, we got them in spades today. Like clockwork, they ameliorated the coarse and discordant nature of Jay Powell's press conference. Then you need to see the bears overreach in some frighteningly moronic way that demonstrates their overconfidence. We got into some crazy early morning shorts selling between 4 and 5am this morning of key stock names, the ones I follow, Palantir, Apple and Video. They were going down on no news. They were going down hard. They were being shorted by people who believe that they were shooting fish in a barrel. I love when the bears overreach like that. They put their necks right into the news. Finally, you need some data point about that. Say that everybody cares about being asked when we're overbought and you get a major data point, it needs to say it needs to be picture perfect or the market will roll over. When we're oversold. It's the opposite. A bad number doesn't do anything. A good number causes a short squeeze. And that's what happened this morning when the Personal Consumption Expenditure Price Index, the Fed's favorite gauge of inflation, actually showed a slowdown in inflation just 2.4% when 2.5% was expected. That kind of verified what Jay Powell did. Armed with that data was an easy call to buy the down opening and the bottom line, well, that was everything you need. Just enough overconfidence by the bears, suddenly count of the bad news is sort of the decline. A positive data point that goes against the downturn and most importantly, the oscillator that measures extreme negativity. It was indeed an exquisite moment this morning. They don't come along all that often, but when they do, you have no choice but to pounce. Let's start with Ed in Texas.
Caller Ed
Ed Gun BARREL City, Texas Jim, perfect.
Jim Cramer
What's going on?
Caller Ed
About two or three years ago, before it went all the way down, I bought it at the very top the afternoon, the very top. And I've been riding it all the way down. And I'm wondering if you've noticed in the last 10 days or two weeks it's starting to move even against a down market. And I'm hoping you'll tell me. It might be one of the big surprises for next year.
Jim Cramer
I think if Kelly Ortberg, the CEO, was able to execute, and he seems so far to be pretty hands on, then you're going to be right. Why have we not bought it for the Chapel Trust? I think it's a very tough stock, but I do think it's bottomed and I do think that he might do a good job. But I'll tell you how I'll know. If Kelly Ortberg comes on Mad money, I will know. Let's go to Bob in New York. Bob. Hi, Jim.
Caller Ed
How are you?
Jim Cramer
I'm good, Bob. How are you over the years? I'm glad you're watching. My question is, I'm a longtime holder of Cisco Systems. What's your take on it? Buy. So I think it's a buy. I think that Chuck Robbins has got the ship righted. I think that there's lots of orders. I think that this is a excellent moment to own the stock. Cisco Systems. How about Brandon in California? Brandon. Booyah. Jim, how you doing? I'm doing well. How are you? I'm good, thank you.
Caller Eric
Merry Christmas.
Caller Ed
Happy New Year.
Jim Cramer
So C A V A, what are we doing? Cava is a winner. I think the way I would approach Kava is if you want to get back into it, it's coming back down. It's up 176% for the year. I would wait until January, let it come in a little, buy some stock and let it come in again. That's how I would approach it because it is extremely volatile stock. Let's go to Bob in New York. Bob. Hey, Jim.
Caller Ed
How are you doing today?
Jim Cramer
I'm doing well. How about you, Bob? What's going on, Jim?
Caller Ed
Over the last couple of weeks, my family, my friends, we've all been doing our Christmas shopping, virtually all of it at Kohl's. The stores are crowded, the parking lots are jammed, and quite frankly, if Coal starts closing stores, it would be extremely.
Caller Eric
Disappointing for the community.
Caller Ed
What does Kohl's have to do to stay viable?
Jim Cramer
All right, this very good question. They've got a good board, but I just saw the retirement of a terrific executive. I think that Kohl's viability is in question in itself, and that's because it's brick and mortar. And I don't know exactly why. What is the raison debt of Kohl's top verdict? Got to call it like, duh. I just. I gotta call it like it is exquisite moments like this don't happen very often, but when you get as much build up negativity like we had this very morning, you have no choice but to jump in and buy on my money tonight. Shares of Agco dipped on yesterday's analyst day, but what could prop the stock to plow ahead? I'm getting a land of land with the CEO then what should you make of CVS Health at these incredibly low levels? I'm digging into the decline and giving you and after another Investing Club monthly meeting, I wanted to take time to answer even more questions from our amazing members. So stay with Kramer.
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Jim Cramer
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Jim Cramer
What'S happening in the agricultural Space? Last month we got a tough quarter from agco. It's the maker of big ticket farm equipment. Yesterday AGCO hosted an analyst medium while they set some encouraging long term financial targets for 2029, the forecast for 2025 came up a tad short. But crop prices aren't in good shape and when farmers make less money, they buy less machinery. As a result, AGCO stock dropped more than 3% yesterday even though it erased most of those losses. Today it's still down over 20% for the year. So could this be a good entry point or do we need to worry about more pain to come? Let's check in with Eric and Sodi is the Chairman, President and CEO of AGCO to get a better read the situation. Mr.
Caller Eric
Welcome back to Happy Holidays, Jim.
Jim Cramer
Oh same to you Eric. Now I've got to tell you that there's been times when the farmer did badly and agua did worse. I think you've changed that. I think you can now kind of outrun the cycle because of changes that you've made. And I want you to tell people how this is no longer you're not hostage right?
Caller Eric
This is a fundamentally different company. You know, in the last cycle we at the trough we had 4% margins. At the peak 8 we're like a 6% company. When it first came to Wall street taking the job, we said we're going to be 10% at the mid cycle we hit that. Then we raised the bar to 12% a couple of years ago and we're on track to hit that. And yesterday we announced we're going to be more like 14 to 15% over the next few years. So excited about the structural change we've been building into the company.
Jim Cramer
Well I'm glad you had the analyst day because I think people do remember the old one and that's why the stock is down so much because your technology that you're offering, the need to be able to get new equipment if you want to be able to be more productive is so self evident that it's not the AGCO that I, you know, I always like the agco bold. I want to, you know, want to disparage. But this is very different.
Caller Eric
Absolutely. You know, we close on the biggest ag tech deal in the history of our industry this April. It was a big tech deal to accelerate our journey on tech. We're controlling what we can control. We're gaining market share, investing in technology, improving our margins. The cycle of the whole industry is down right now, probably will be for a little bit more, maybe a couple more quarters. But 25 is going to be the bottom. And when this market starts taking off, which it will, this company is ready to run.
Jim Cramer
I'm also glad to hear, I've always heard jam, jam, jam when associated with Fent, but I never saw the money put behind it. That's changed.
Caller Eric
Yes. Fend is one of our big growth drivers. It's a, we've moved it out of a European tractor business to a full line equipment business that we're taking global, especially in north and South America. And the customers that, that get to appreciate the Fend experience love it. They won't go back.
Jim Cramer
They say people, what they do may not be as familiar with. Yeah.
Caller Eric
So Fent is our premium brand that sits at the very top of the market. It's the best of the best tractor, combine, planter, sprayer, and essentially it's best in technology, best in quality, and then our dealers are trained to have best in support. So it's just the best of the best for the most demanding farmer. And this Fend experience is one that once customers taste it, they really love it and they won't go back. So we're steadily growing in both north.
Jim Cramer
And South America at the same time. The farmers like, let's take South America. I look at, at some of the countries, they'll have a terrible weather position and then that does really severely impact your sales.
Caller Eric
Weather is something the farmers can't control. But they kind of know that, you know, they have years where things go their way and sometimes they don't. So they know how to manage that. They kind of keep an equity position in their business. And that happens every year somewhere in the world. So that farmers understand that.
Jim Cramer
Well, here's where I'm going. Yesterday I had Sean Connolly, he's the president and CEO of conagra brand. I saw that and he was saying that inflation is intractable because of eggs and animal protein. Now I hear that and I think, why can't they produce more and take advantage of these higher prices? It just doesn't Work like that, though.
Caller Eric
Well, poultry is going to respond faster. And that's what he had said as well. Beef takes a little longer. You know, beef was under such pressure and so the herd was reduced quite a bit, but now it's being built back. It just takes two or three years for those, those that cattle to mature to a point where it's. It's beef ready.
Jim Cramer
Now, what are the, what is precision ag doing? For someone who wants to take advantage of the need to have more animal feed, what can they do that they couldn't do before?
Caller Eric
Well, essentially our precision ag is to help the farmer grow more yield, have more bushels per acre, and manage their inputs more effectively. A couple of the exciting ones, we're now selling an autonomous kit. You put this kit onto a tractor and it allows you to pull the operator right out of the seat. No, no person in the tractor. So as the combine which is harvesting, the crop is harvesting. As it fills up and gets full, it summons the tractor. The tractor drives alongside the combine, no operator in it, locks in with the combine. The combine unloads the grain. In fact, I think you're seeing it right. Well, this is forage, but the one before that was grain. It unloads the grain. When the combine's empty, it hits release and the tractor drives off, no operator in it at all. So those are all things that help with labor and help with keeping that combine running. A full optimization. We have an AI operation or AI system on our sprayers where the cameras can tell the difference between a weed the size of a dime versus a corn plant or soybean and only spray the weeds instead of having to spray the whole field. Saves a lot on input. So one's helping yield, the other one's helping inputs. Those are all to help make the farmer more productive.
Jim Cramer
How old is the average tractor in the world? I mean, there must be a refresh cycle. You can't just keep. I know you can take care of these. And the farmers are incredibly resourceful. But at a certain point, don't they just say, listen, I can't get the yield that I would if I just go to agco?
Caller Eric
Well, so this is a, this is a really important point. Agco is the only company in the market that thinks about retrofit. So a typical tractor lasts 15 or 20 years. Same thing. But that technology gets refreshed much faster than that. So we have a whole tech division, which was accelerated by the tech business that we bought this spring, made a joint venture, and essentially we'll sell a module onto an existing planter or sprayer and it doesn't matter which brand. So we serve all farmers of all brands. It could be our competitor number one or competitor number two could be five years old, 10 years old. And we'll upgrade that machine directly for the farmer to make it more have new capability.
Jim Cramer
Well, look, I've got to tell you, I just feel for you because the farmers, they've got, you know, the weather bad. But you know, what does matter though, is that if they want to get more out of their field, which is a substantive thing, they can go to AGCO. And that's why I think, as you said, when 25 comes around, you have to be in. There have been some runs in AGCO that are staggering. They're just staggering. And I think these will be a little smoother, which means that it's not going to be as as tough for the portfolio manager to buy. I want to thank you, Eric and sodas Chairman, President, CEO of agco. Very cogent analyst day. You can find all about it. If you like ag, this is the way to go. Make money. Back after the break.
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Coming up, what's ailing CVS Health with shares well off their highs. Kramer sharing his diagnosis on the slew of issues facing the healthcare name and writing up his prescription for profits. Next.
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Jim Cramer
Things went from bad to worse for CVS Health this weekend. I don't really, I don't know. I don't say they turn around now. It's been problem after problem for these guys. First, the drugstore business has been hit hard by rampant theft to the point where they now lock up a lot of their merchandise, making the shopping experience suboptimal a huge pain in the neck. Hence why they keep losing market share to Amazon where many of the items CVS carries can be delivered to your house same day. CVS has tried to turn things around by closing their worst stores, opening health clinics and doubling down on their non drug store business. Businesses like Aetna for health insurance caremark their pharmacy benefits manager PBM. They now have more than 900 minute clinics and over 200 Oak street health clinics. Strange moves though given that Walgreens has been scaling down its clinic business. And more important, Walmart decided to get out of the clinic game entirely because they can't find the workers they need so therefore they can't get a good return. Let me ask you if Walmart, the most powerful and wealthy retailer can't make a go of it, how kind of can CVS get a good return? Second problem, 6 years ago CVS bought Aetna, making them one of the largest managed care providers in this country. But this industry has been struggling for a year and a half as people catch up on procedures that they delayed during the pandemic. So now that it has to pay for those procedures at the same time, Aetna dropped the ball with its Medicare Advantage plans for seniors. They made the plans too cheap, bringing in lots more people, but it's come back to bite them as people use more health care services and the government starting to get stingier with these reimbursements. Eventually this cascading set of problems cost now former CEO Karen lynch her job. After a heinous quarter in August, the company booted Aetna President Brian Cain and Lynch said she personally oversee the insurance business. But she never really got a chance to turn around Aetna or the rest of the business. She was fired abruptly in mid October and replaced by David Joyner, who previously ran the company's Caremark pharmacy services business. Not surprisingly, CVS also pre announced terrible third quarter results. So yeah, this stock's been a disaster all year, but after trading sideways for much of the summer and fall, everything fell apart this month. It feels like investors have given up entirely with the stock down more than 25% for December now some that's because health care stocks have really fallen out of favor since the election. Something I've been talking about all week. Some of it's because the whole health insurance space has been doing poorly since the CEO of UnitedHealthcare was murdered on December 4th. Even though the shooter did something horrible you can't just shoot people because you don't like the business model. It's generated a lot of negative headlines for the industry and that includes cvs, the parent of ed. Then this week, the entire pharmacy benefits manager and health insurance cohort took it on the chin when President elect Trump talked about cutting the middleman out of the health care industry to bring down costs. While Trump didn't say exactly who he was talking about there, investors went ahead and assumed he was talking about the PBM and the insurance companies between Aetna and Caremark. CVS is in both these businesses, which is why it fell 5.6% on Monday and then 5.5% on Tuesday. Then on Wednesday night, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against the company alleging that now I'm going to quote here, CBS knowingly dispensed controlled substances in violation of Controlled Substances act, end quote. That word knowingly is very important when we come to court. Ouch. For background, 2 years ago CVS was one of the several pharma related companies that agreed to a $21 billion settlement with many states and towns over the opioid epidemic. CVS agreed to pay to up to 4.9 billion over 10 years, which actually sounds like a lot, but considering the present value of money and the multiple year spread isn't really that much of a hit as it seems at the time. We figured this put the opioid related litigation risk, that was it. Right. But crucially, that 2022 settlement did not involve the federal government, which is who came after CBS this week, the Justice Department. Now as a Harvard law graduate who never really gets used by law degree, I like to read the complaints when there's these big justice cases against the company I cover. So I took a gander at the 900 at the 97 page complaint against CVS and I got to tell you, frightfully damning. Justice has incredible detailed information about individual patients who died of drug overdoses with specific details about how many painkillers these individuals were getting from cvs. It is hard to imagine how any legitimate pharmacist would give anyone such high doses in such short period of time. The detail is excruciating and it's horrendous. That's the eye catching part of the complaint, as are some individual examples of CVS filling prescriptions for doctor offices that were known to be pill mills, many drug dealers with a medical license. Then the Justice Department alleges again quoting CVS prioritized profits over safety in dispensing controlled substances. CVS knew that its pharmacists lacked the time to comply with their professional practice obligations, including their exercise of corresponding responsibility. CVS also knew that its staffing policies and compensation and performance metrics emphasized speed over safety, end quote. Justice goes on to say, as a result of these policies and practices, CBS causes pharmacists to knowingly dispense controlled substances pursuant to invalid and dangerous prescriptions. These problems persist. I mean, I got to tell you, this is not good. Something I think CBS will find very hard to combat if this one ever goes to trial. Stock fell another 3.3% yesterday in response to the lawsuit. And we certainly haven't hurt last of this. Assuming the Trump administration just pursues this lawsuit and the evidence is strong enough that I have to believe that they will keep going hard even though it's a Biden justice suit, then we're probably looking at either another multibillion dollar settlement for CBS in the future, or maybe there is no settlement. Maybe justice is willing to, willing to go for blood here. The, the arguments are so powerful. Now after reading the complaint and I read it twice because I thought it was so bad. Actually read a lot wife. I was like, I couldn't believe it. I felt the need to take a fresh look at CBS balance sheet and I did not like what I saw. Copy has about $59 billion in net debt with another 17 billion operating lease liabilities, both of which would be fine if CVS was still putting up good Numbers. They did 20 billion in earnings for interest, tax appreciation, amortization, 2023. They had over 10 billion in free cash flow in each of the past five years. So, you know, that's more than enough to cover these. But this year, CVS seems on track to post a 25% decline in EBITDA dollar. The analysts are looking for just 14.5 billion. Their free cash flow should come in around 6.8 billion. Suddenly the company has a lot less breathing room, which is really a big reason why the stocks for sale. Now imagine they have to come with a few billion dollars more to settle the federal opioid cases, things could get really ugly real fast. Although maybe the Fed would stretch it out again to give CBS some breathing room. Listen, with a 6% yield in the national footprint, I'd love to be more constructive on this one, but the retail stores are challenging. I don't know if they can turn that around. Their insurance business has been crushed this year. If they offer less generous Medicare Advantage plans for next year, that'll help a profitability. But then it lose a ton of market share in the Kmart PBM business. Well, now that seems to be in the crosshairs of the incoming Trump administration. Who knows if Trump follows through? He has had similar dust ups to this one with other corporations that gradually faded away. But you really want to stick around to find out if that's what's going to happen here? And that was all true before this incredible Justice Department opioid lawsuit. Here's the bottom line. CVS Health has a cascading set of problems. And while I'm rooting for them to turn things around, I definitely would not invest in it. Let's go to Joe in New York. Joe.
Caller Ed
Yes, Mr. Kramer, how are you?
Jim Cramer
Okay. Everything. Thank you for asking.
Caller Ed
Doing a little shopping now. Okay. I've owned Merck for many years, Right. And I just recently added to my position it's a great widow in orphan stock.
Jim Cramer
I love it.
Caller Ed
But it keeps going lower. But they got Keytruda, the cancer drug. They I think it's been approved and I'm thinking that maybe I should add more to my position.
Jim Cramer
Should I, Joe? You should. You should. I think this is part of a sector move. Okay. There's nothing wrong with Merck. If anything, I think that, that Rob, John, Rob Davis is doing a remarkable job. I find this one cheaper than J and J cheaper than Pfizer. I think it should be bought. They've got good growth. I think you're really on to something and I hope you have a good holiday. Let's go to Larry in Illinois. Larry, Jim.
Caller Ed
Jim, thanks for the call. Taking my call yet? Jim? Wanted to ask you. With the introduction of the highly effective GLP1 weight loss medications that are now becoming more widely prescribed, folks are getting healthy, losing a significant amount of weight, but they're also losing muscle mass. And you know, I can really see a much larger market for protein shakes in the years ahead as more people take advantage of these medications. I wanted to ask your thoughts on Bell Ring brands.
Jim Cramer
We actually did a nice profile, Bell Ring Variance, Larry, and you're absolutely, absolutely right. It's been a real horse though, since we did the port, did the download on it. I'd like to see it come off a little bit because it sells at 34 times earnings. But yes, we think the world of that company. We've really liked it. You really drilled out all the reasons why we do every CVS Health has its work cut out to turn things around. And given all the problems it's currently facing, I can't advise you to invest in this turnaround. Now, much more man money ahead, including a look inside the investing club by answering some of their members pressing questions. And later, I'm addressing the trading activity in this tape and telling you where I stand on my investing fundamentals. I don't want you to miss that and all your calls. Rapid fire in tonight's edition of the lightning round. So stay with crimp. So yesterday we held our investing club monthly meeting. Once a month, Jeff Marks and I get together to walk club members through our thought process of how we make decisions for the portfolio. We discuss our current holdings and we take questions from our club members. Now, my favorite part of these meetings is taking your questions. And since we didn't have enough time yesterday to go through all them, I'm going to give you an inside look at what we do for the club tonight. So the first question is Mark is from Mark in the US who says, hi, Jim. I love the club. Thank you so much for educating me. Apple is my biggest holding consistent with the club and has been doing great lately. I'm concerned it may now be too large waiting in my portfolio. How do you determine when to trim a holding to keep it from being too large? Okay, typically these are cross disciplines. We like to have no more than 5% in one particular stock. But we also have a discipline which says own, don't trade Apple. The result is is that we're at cross purposes. And so it's a little bit more of an art than a science. We like Apple enough that we're willing to go and continue. But I want to tell you something. If you are even the least bit concerned, the least bit concerned, then you sell it down, take it down to 5%. We do not want any investor to be concerned about the size of a stock. That shows you that they can't live with it. It's got to be changed. Next up, Dan in Colorado asked Jim, 2024 has been a good year for the market and the portfolio. Knowing hogs get sorted. What strategic advice would you give in trimming our portfolios and taking some profits by the end of the year? Thanks for all you do and thanks for all you and your team do for us. Thank you so much for thanking the team. Team. It means a lot to me. All right. Now this is a really difficult problem because I go through this with Jeff and I've said that we were way too greedy. For instance, on Broadcom, we had a really huge game in Broadcom. It spiked gigantically. Made a lot of money in a short period of Time and I should go take some more. It doesn't matter how much we love Broadcom. It's got to come off. So if you see some situations and you're up huge on where you bought it, you take something off. Because we do not want to be pigs. That's why we took us some Broadcom. That's why you have to go down your portfolio and see what you're up big and take a little off. Now let's hear from Kim in Arizona. She said, hi, Jim and Jeff. What is a good entry point to add more? Eli Lilly, thanks for all that you and your team do for us members. The answer is right now. Lilly. Today in the morning market before it opened was up 80 points. By the end of the day, it was barely up. Why was it up? Because Novo Nordisk had a competitive new drug that was not able to meet its standards of what people were looking for it disappointed. That left Lilly pretty much in best of class away from its competitor, Novo Nordisk. This shouldn't have been up 10, it should have been up 30. A minimum of 30, maybe as much as 50. So I've got to tell you, I think, Lilly, this is where you buy. Next up, Stephen in Texas wrote, with the incoming administration, potential geopolitical risks that could occur at any point. Is it still feasible for oil to approach $100 a barrel or higher in the next 12 months, 24 months? If so, what is the best way to put this? Okay, I'm never going to say it's inconsceable because let's say President Elect Trump says that's it. Iran doesn't get to ship anything. You'll have a big. You'll have a big spike or something happens to Russian production, you'll have a big spike. I don't think it'll happen. We own kotara, which is 50% natural gas, percent oil. I have to tell you, even today I wanted to buy more Cotera because natural gas went to 350 and Jeff correctly pointed out it's really just a hedgehog. We're not in there to make a lot of money. The answer is if you felt like you make a lot of money, you buy Chevron. Good yield, buyback, the balance sheet, but I'm not recommending it because I don't expect that to happen. Next, a question from Joe in Minnesota. I established a small position, Palo Alto, mid October. Would you suggest adding it to this time? Actually, what we did was we added to CrowdStrike. CrowdStrike fell precipitously, almost 10% over a period of a week with nothing going on whatsoever. Therefore that was a disparity with the fundamentals which I think are excellent. So the one to buy right now at this moment is crowdstrike starting to bounce back. That's the one that is now playing offense. After we had George Kircher, the CEO, he had this visit 130 companies in 100 days in order to be able to become what he called the apology tour for the outage that occurred in the second week of July. Third week, July. I really like that one better. Now heading to Paul in the US he's wondering is 80 a buy companies expecting profit gains and planning to return money to shareholders through share buybacks and dividend increases? Okay, I will tell you this. While I don't want to own adt, your description of what's going to happen is very true. At is reform better company. Why don't want to own it? Because if I do want to own anything in that space, I want to buy growth. If I want to buy growth, that means I want to buy T Mobile. And Mike Siebert is doing a terrific job. The stock has been incredible. It's been a horse. They've got great relationship with Apple. I'd rather be in that and forego that dividend, which just can't be nearly as important as the capital gainstream that you'll get from being with Sievert and T Mobile. Next Harry and Forrest's Dell has sold off recently considering a future replacement cycle. Is Dell a buy, sell or hold? Dell did not have a good quarter. It really was a disappointing quarter. I agree with people even though I think the world of Michael Dell. However, I think the Dell's second half will be much better. I do not think that much of its first half if you have the patience to be able to own the stock here. I don't think there's a lot of downside and I think there's a lot of upside. However, we own other stocks in the portfolio that I think are better even at this price. Do you know that I actually like Nvidia 134 more than I like Dell? Just saying. All right. And last but not least, Stephen Richard in the US writes, I currently have a substantially large position in Netflix NFL X in my Roth IRA account heading into next year 2025 is my current position a whole lighten or sell? You know what those are? Those options are not good enough for me because I would actually add a buy. You've got Squid Games 2 coming up. You've got NFL game Christmas Day. You have management being vastly superior. You've got an ad tier that is just going to me put huge amount of money in the coffers of Netflix. This company has been consistently underestimated by Wall street and I think it is sensational. Bad money is back after the right.
Mad Money Announcer
Coming up, Kramer takes your calls. And the sky's the limit. It's a fast fire. Lightning round next.
Jim Cramer
It is time. It's time for the lightning round by step. And then the lightning round is over. Are you ready? Ski tight the light round. Crazy. But let's start with John and Mr. John.
Caller Ed
Hey, Jim, I love the show.
Jim Cramer
Thank you.
Caller Ed
Just wanted to know if I could get a twofer. I'd like to know what your thoughts were on X Force exporting LNG and Cheniere Energy in particular.
Jim Cramer
Okay. I like the LNG market now that we have President elect Trump coming in because he's pro LNG and Cheniere is a terrific stock. It's up 20% the year. I think you'd still do well. Let's go to Frank in New York. Frank, Jimmy. How are you after this tumultuous week? I tell you. What are we.
Caller Ed
What do we.
Jim Cramer
Listen, Jim, I'm looking at this stock that I think is really in the.
Caller Ed
Sweet spot and got plenty of juice in the tank.
Jim Cramer
What do you think of Arista Network? JC allows she is some incredible CEO and that business is smoking hot. I would be a buyer of Arista. Let's go to Stafford in California. Stafford. Hey, Jim, Happy holidays. Same to you. Hey, I wanted to get your thoughts.
Caller Ed
On Texas Pacific Land Corp.
Jim Cramer
Right. This stock has been just a horse, but all really is is just royalties off of oil. We have liked it, but it's now going up so much. I've got to tell you, I want to hold on. Let's go to Tim in Idaho. Tim. Hey, Booyah.
Caller Ed
From beautiful Boise, Idaho.
Jim Cramer
It must be great there.
Caller Ed
It is beautiful. Hey, Jim. Under Armour.
Caller Eric
Kevin Plank's back.
Caller Ed
Looks like they have a little bit of a turnaround.
Jim Cramer
Here's the way I look at it. I think it's a great spec. We have to have a couple quarters that are good. Remember, Nike just had a real hard time. Hard to imagine everybody doing well if Nike's coming back with a vengeance. So let's be careful. But it is a spec and a good one. Marvin in California. Marvin.
Caller Ed
Hi, Jim. A special booyah from Central California. Excellent first time perfect grafta, Dr. Kramer. And happy national illness Weather day. I just wanted to thank you and your very Hard working staff for doing such a great job and making the sacrifice it takes every day.
Jim Cramer
We do have unbelievable staff. Thank you so much. We great party last time for the team. It was really fabulous.
Caller Ed
Thank you. So last week I took your suggestion and rang the register on some really high flyers and I was able to pay off my student loans early. So I want to thank you for that.
Jim Cramer
Oh, you're quite welcome.
Caller Ed
So my stock has a very low price to earnings ratio. Should I buy, sell or hold Wells Fargo?
Jim Cramer
I like Wells Fargo right here. I think it's going to be a fantastic year. In 2025 I would be a buyer of Wells Fargo. Let's go to Kurt and Nevada.
American Express Representative
Kurt.
Caller Ed
Oh ya, Jim Skirt from Vegas. All right, longtime viewer, first time caller. I have a a quick question. I, I bought Carvana two years ago at $11, $11 a share.
Jim Cramer
Well I'll tell you're up a lot. You take that double your cost basis, take out 22 bucks, you'll caught a double and then let the rest run and I'll feel terrific. I won't have to worry about you. Let's go to Alex in Texas. Alex, Jim Kramer.
Caller Ed
How you doing?
Jim Cramer
I am doing well today. Alex, how about you?
Caller Ed
Good. I hope the Eagles win this weekend.
Jim Cramer
We need that. We need to beat the commanders. I'm worried about them. We got this guy I, Ben Stoto on our staff. He won't stop irritating me about how great the commanders are. Enough already. Let's put them in their place. How can I help?
Caller Ed
So I've been holding this stock for a very long time, since I was.
Jim Cramer
Young and I just want to know.
Caller Ed
Your thoughts on corporation.
Jim Cramer
Oh, I couldn't believe the CSX fell this well. And by the way, I'm going to give you a two for I think the Union Pacific is great right here too. These are all worried about tariffs. I'm not worried. These are really good companies. You have to buy them when they're low. Let's go to Terry in Florida.
Caller Ed
Terry, hi Jim. Wanted to ask you about stock that you recommended in July of 23 and I bought at 206 and last month it reached an all time high of.
Jim Cramer
377I believe it was and whether or not I should.
Caller Ed
It's been down ever since for the.
Jim Cramer
Past month it's Eaton. Oh no, you want to hold. You know Eaton is a buy and hold story. They've really done incredible work to be able to revolutionize that portfolio. They are pure winners at Eaton. Do not sell own and that ladies and Gentlemen, conclusion of the Lightning Round.
Mad Money Announcer
The Lightning Round is sponsored Sponsored by Charles Schwab. Coming up, have some traders on the street turned investing into gambling? Kramer's revealing why he's calling for an end to the market's newfound addiction to short term day trades. Next.
Jim Cramer
Booyah, Jim.
Caller Ed
Your integrity makes you the Booyah saint of Wall Street. Booyah Jim.
Jim Cramer
Jimmy Chill.
Caller Ed
Booyah Jimmy Chillah. Jim.
Jim Cramer
Quadruple. That's a lot of booyahs. Today the Wall Street Journal ran a brilliant article titled More men are addicted to the crack cocaine of the stock market. As the piece points out, investors are hooked on the market's riskiest trades result. Listen to this. At times, the trading led to mood swings, sleepless nights, even depression. Not to mention spiraling losses. Reading this piece, I felt like it was talking about me and my hedge fund days. At one time I was known as Reverend Jim Bob from the church that was happening now. An epithet coined by the late great Mark Haynes, former anchor of Squawkbox. And I was deeply involved in day trading. But remember, I was a professional with huge amounts of resources, a full time research staff. That was 24 years ago. Since retiring from my chart, I've gone away from day trading and now emphasize only buy and homework. Which is my twist on buy and hold. Because things can change with the company. When I created my travel trust, which you can follow by joining the CNBC Investing club, the whole philosophy is rooted in owning stocks, not trading them unless you're a professional. I am dead set against day trading, particularly the kind that is based on zero days to experie or zero dte options. These are options that expire the same day. They're no different from gambling on any time touchdowns on DraftKings. Except DraftKings offers much safer trading with better warnings. Let me say from the outset that after reading this article I want to immediately call for an end to this nonsense. We must police ourselves. There's no reason for these things to exist other than trying to get people hooked on the fentanyl of Wall Street. There's no reason to push people into zero day options other than pure greed. The industry is encouraging bad behavior. That's just plain wrong. After reading this article, people created these things should be embarrassed for doing so. They should read this story and repent. I know what people are gambling on and so do you. They're constantly trading the cryptos. They're day trading all these uranium and commercial space and quantum computing and future mobility stocks. They think they can game the ungainball. I don't know who dreams up these stocks, but we all can see the volume. We know that they're mostly day trading vehicles chemicals. Can we stop this gambling behavior? No, it's an instant. But can we certainly make a value judgment. And my value judgment is that those who have a huge stake in promoting options brokerage houses that rely on feeding crack to the investing community, they need to be held accountable. We need to help those who are getting addicted and we need to stop those who might become addicted. After all, the markets were created for investing, not day trading on the direction of stocks. There's a big difference between making an informed investment pure gambling. I honestly think we should just merge these kinds of trades with the gambling at DraftKings encourage DraftKings has plenty of warnings about what can and will go wrong. They provide resources for those who feel like they might have a problem and they offer tools for safer gambling like deposit and wagering limits. I like that. It's much more honest than our industry. So we have to help the people committed who've gotten addicted to insanely risky trades by making it more difficult and at least slapping a warning label in the crack cocaine even if we can't get rid of it. And I sure wish we could. I know it crimp profits, but so what? After reading the article today, I think this is pretty urgent. Wall street is hurting people, real people. They aren't doing it just by themselves. Do the people who push these products need the money that badly? Shame on you if you do. Shame on you. The answer is if you need that money, just go set up a casino. Darn it. At least then nobody will have any illusions about what they are doing with their money. I like to say there's always a bull market somewhere and I promise you I'd find it just for you right here at Mad Bunny, I'm Jim Cramer. See you next time.
American Express Representative
All opinions expressed by Jim Cramer on this podcast are solely Kramer's opinions and do not reflect the opinions of CNBC, NBCUniversal or their parent company or affiliates, and may have been previously disseminated by Kramer on television, radio, Internet, or another medium. You should not treat any opinion expressed by Jim Cramer as a specific inducement to make a particular investment or follow a particular strategy, but only as an expression of his opinion. Kramer's opinions are based upon information he considers reliable, but neither CNBC nor its affiliates and or subsidiaries warrant its completeness or accuracy, and it should not be relied upon as such. To view the full Mad Money disclaimer, Please visit cnbc.com madmoneydisclaimer Is it time to reimagine your future? The right business skills may make a difference in your career. At Capella University, we offer a relevant education that's designed to focus on what you need to know in the business world. We'll teach professional skills to help you pursue your goals like business management, strategic planning, and effective communication, and you can apply these skills right away. A different future is closer than you think with Capella University. Learn more@capella.edu.
Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer – Episode Summary (12/20/24)
Release Date: December 21, 2024
1. Market Overview
In the latest episode of Mad Money, Jim Cramer delves into the current market dynamics, emphasizing the importance of identifying "exquisite moments"—instances where the market presents significant buying opportunities due to extreme overselling or overbuying. Cramer highlighted the recent robust performance of major indices, noting:
“Dow gaining 498 points today, S&P vaulting 1.09% and the Nasdaq jumping 1.03%.” ([01:03])
He underscores the cyclical nature of markets, reassuring investors that "there is always a bull market somewhere" and his mission remains focused on leveling the playing field for all investors to capitalize on these opportunities.
2. Tools for Spotting Market Opportunities
Cramer introduced the S&P oscillator by MarketEdge, a tool designed to gauge market sentiment by indicating overbought or oversold conditions. He explained its functionality:
“The oscillator starts at zero, which is a neutral zone. Either too hot or too cold.” ([01:03])
When the oscillator reaches +5, it signals an overbought market, advising caution:
“When the gets to plus five and say I, I want to buy some for the chapters, I don't, I just walk away at plus five, you are overreaching and the odds are no longer in your favor.” ([01:03])
Conversely, a reading below -5 suggests an oversold market ripe for buying:
“Once it touches minus five, you need to hold your nose and start buying, no matter how bad it looks.” ([02:52])
Cramer emphasized the effectiveness of this tool, citing historical data that demonstrates significant gains within 30 to 60 days following extreme oscillator readings.
3. Featured Company Analysis: AGCO
A significant portion of the episode was dedicated to analyzing AGCO, a leading manufacturer of farm equipment. Cramer interviewed Eric Burger, Chairman, President, and CEO of AGCO, to gain insights into the company's strategic transformations.
Structural Improvements and Technological Advancements
Burger detailed AGCO's commitment to enhancing profit margins and investing in technology:
“We're going to be more like 14 to 15% over the next few years.” ([15:36])
He highlighted the company's focus on precision agriculture technologies, which aim to increase yield and optimize input usage. Innovations such as autonomous kits for tractors and AI-driven sprayers exemplify AGCO's dedication to modernizing farming practices.
Market Position and Global Expansion
Burger discussed AGCO's strategic global expansions, particularly in North and South America, and the successful integration of premium brands like Fendt. This move has positioned AGCO to capture a larger market share and better serve demanding farmers with high-quality, technologically advanced equipment.
“We're steadily growing in both north and South America at the same time.” ([17:36])
4. Deep Dive: CVS Health Challenges
Cramer provided an in-depth analysis of CVS Health's ongoing struggles, highlighting multiple factors contributing to the company's declining performance.
Operational and Competitive Struggles
CVS has faced rampant theft, leading to increased security measures that have negatively impacted the shopping experience. Additionally, competition from Amazon, which offers same-day delivery for many CVS products, has eroded market share.
“Nothing as powerful as the power of us.” ([01:03])
Aetna Acquisition and Insurance Sector Woes
The acquisition of Aetna positioned CVS as a major managed care provider. However, the insurance sector has been underperforming, exacerbated by delays in procedures post-pandemic and mispriced Medicare Advantage plans that attracted more enrollees than sustainable.
Legal Troubles and Financial Strain
Cramer discussed the recent lawsuit filed by the Justice Department alleging CVS's complicity in dispensing controlled substances improperly. This lawsuit, coupled with a significant decline in EBITDA and limited free cash flow, has severely strained CVS's financial health.
“Justice has incredible detailed information about individual patients who died of drug overdoses...” ([17:36])
5. Investing Club Insights
Jim Cramer shared insights from the recent Investing Club monthly meeting, where strategic portfolio decisions and investment philosophies were discussed. Emphasizing a disciplined approach, Cramer advised maintaining diversification and caution in overweight positions.
Portfolio Management Strategies
Addressing concerns about holding large positions in stocks like Apple, Cramer recommended:
“If you are even the least bit concerned, the least bit concerned, then you sell it down, take it down to 5%.” ([30:19])
He stressed the importance of not letting oversized holdings cause investor anxiety, advocating for adjustments to maintain a balanced portfolio.
6. Caller Q&A Highlights
a. Cisco Systems
Caller Bob from New York inquired about Cisco Systems. Cramer responded optimistically, highlighting the company's strong leadership under Chuck Robbins and robust order pipelines.
“I think Chuck Robbins has got the ship righted. I think that there's lots of orders. I think that this is a excellent moment to own the stock.” ([09:40])
b. CAVA and Kohl's
Brandon from California asked about CAVA and Kohl's. Cramer identified CAVA as a strong performer worth buying, while expressing skepticism about Kohl's viability due to its reliance on brick-and-mortar operations.
c. Merck and Under Armour
Ed from Illinois shared his experience with Merck and sought advice on expanding his position. Cramer endorsed increasing holdings in Merck, noting its growth potential and the success of its cancer drug, Keytruda.
“I think this is part of a sector move. Okay. There's nothing wrong with Merck.” ([30:16])
d. Netflix and Dell
Callers also queried about Netflix and Dell. Cramer recommended holding onto Netflix due to upcoming content releases and advised patience with Dell, believing in its potential for a smoother recovery.
7. Lightning Round Summary
In the high-energy Lightning Round, Cramer provided rapid-fire recommendations on a variety of stocks:
Each recommendation was brief yet insightful, providing listeners with actionable advice on diverse sectors.
8. Cramer's Stance on Day Trading Addiction
Towards the episode's conclusion, Cramer addressed the controversial topic of day trading addiction. Referencing a Wall Street Journal article, he voiced strong opposition to the rise of high-risk trading behaviors, likening them to addictive substances like crack cocaine.
“We must police ourselves. There's no reason for these things to exist other than trying to get people hooked on the fentanyl of Wall Street.” ([44:02])
Cramer criticized the financial industry's promotion of zero-day options and volatile trading strategies, advocating for more responsible investment practices and support systems for those affected by trading addictions.
9. Conclusion
Jim Cramer wrapped up the episode by reinforcing his commitment to helping investors navigate the complexities of the market through informed decision-making and disciplined investment strategies. He encouraged listeners to engage with the Investing Club for deeper insights and to adopt a buy-and-hold philosophy over short-term trading tactics.
“There's always a bull market somewhere and I promise you I'd find it just for you right here at Mad Money, I'm Jim Cramer.” ([43:41])
Final Thoughts
This episode of Mad Money offered a comprehensive blend of market analysis, strategic stock recommendations, and critical discussions on the broader implications of trading behaviors. Cramer's insights into AGCO and CVS Health provided valuable lessons on evaluating company fundamentals and industry challenges. Additionally, his candid stance on day trading addiction serves as a crucial reminder of the importance of responsible investing.
Listeners not only received actionable advice for their portfolios but also gained a deeper understanding of the market's psychological and structural underpinnings, equipping them to make more informed financial decisions.