Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer – January 26, 2026: Episode Summary

Episode Theme

Jim Cramer takes listeners through a pivotal week in the markets, focusing on separating real market drivers from headline noise, preparing for a high-stakes week of earnings (especially from the Magnificent Seven tech stocks), analyzing the first big IPO of 2026, and exploring the ongoing boom in gold through a CEO interview. Cramer's signature investor Q&A and Lightning Round provide actionable advice and his trademark straight talk.

1. Opening – Understanding Market Drivers

[01:41]

• Main Point: Market moves are about business fundamentals, not headlines or emotions.
• Cramer challenges the idea that major news events or “bad moods” drive stock declines, insisting investors focus on what truly impacts business. He provides extensive examples where news (shootings, bad weather, geopolitical chaos, metal rallies) had little direct impact on stocks, emphasizing:
  • “Stocks do not go down because people are in a bad mood… They go down because something goes wrong that impacts their businesses.” (Jim Cramer, 01:50)

Key Insight:

• Emotional factors and headlines (e.g., shootings in Minneapolis, weather, strong/weak dollar, precious metals rally) often have zero impact on earnings for most companies, especially major stocks in the S&P 500.

Memorable Moment:

• Cramer recounts how, after the Kent State shootings in 1970, the market dropped only 2.5% before surging 30% three weeks later, illustrating how even major national events don’t always set the market’s trajectory.

2. Earnings Season Focus: Navigating the ‘Magnificent Seven’

[13:15]

Cramer prepares listeners for a critical week, as key tech behemoths are reporting. He urges investors to ignore the “fire hose” of data and instead hone in on the true plot lines.

Key Companies & What to Watch

Meta (Facebook) [15:10]

• Stock has suffered due to massive capital expenditures (capex) to build AI data centers.
• Key earnings issue: “If we get a gigantic capex projection, it’s going to be tough for Meta to rally. But if we get not terrible guidance on the CapEx front, then maybe the stock could break out of its downtrend.” (Cramer, 15:57)
• Needs to clarify what the multi-billion-dollar AI investment is actually delivering.

Microsoft [17:18]

• Suffered after increased capex guidance and slower Azure cloud growth rates.
• Listen for: No more capex increases, and a surprise beat in Azure growth.
• Investors want to know if Microsoft can maintain its “moat” against rising AI development tools and competitors’ self-built software.

Tesla [18:52]

• No longer a “numbers” story; stock moves with Elon Musk’s narratives about self-driving and robotics.
• “Tesla trades on Elon Musk storytelling.”
• Investors want details on robotaxi and humanoid robot timelines, but Musk’s optimism often exceeds near-term reality.

Apple [19:58]

• Watch for gross margin pressure from higher memory prices (key for iPhones, Macs).
• iPhone 17 launch strength could be critical for the stock.
• Cramer wants updates on Apple’s AI plans and the Gemini (Google) partnership.
• “Apple…the one tech titan that’s not spending like a drunken sailor [on AI data centers]. Own Apple, don’t trade it.” (20:35)

3. Caller Q&A and Stock Analysis

Broadcom [08:34]

• Caller: Stock dropped from $414 to $325.
• Cramer: “Not hold, not sell, but buy…I think it will do it again. One of the cheaper ways to play artificial intelligence.”

Costco [09:26]

• Caller: Is it overvalued now?
• Cramer: Concerned at valuation (50x earnings), but core numbers strong. “I want you to stay long Costco, I still like it.”

Other Fast Takes:

• Nucor preferred over Cleveland Cliffs for steel exposure.
• Old Republic: “Great company…just keep buying, keep reinvesting…was an earnings miss, but all insurers are missing.” (31:04)

4. Spotlight Segment: EquipmentShare IPO [22:59]

• Context: First major IPO of 2026; stock up 33% on first day, healthy market test.
• What is EquipmentShare?
  • Modern equipment rental platform; core product is T3 jobsite management software.
  • Asset-light model via sale/leaseback, strong organic growth.
• Financials:
  • Revenue up from $1.5M (2015) to $3.8B (2024), with 47% YoY growth recently.
  • Slight recent deceleration but still “nicely profitable.”
  • Trades at a higher multiple than established peers (14.5x vs 8–10x), but “worth paying up for growth.”
• Cramer’s View:
  • “It deserves to [trade at a premium] because it’s revolutionizing this industry.” (28:27)
  • Suggests buying a small position now, add on any weakness.

5. Interview Segment: Amara June, CEO of Agnico Eagle Mines (Gold Miner) [32:54]

Gold’s Historic Rally

• Gold over $5,000/oz for the first time.
• Agnico Eagle stock has doubled since last year.
• Cramer: “You said be steadfast, stay long…and it has been unbelievable.” (32:56)

Why is Gold So Strong?

• June: “The fundamentals...are still there: government spending, global disorder, central bank buying (especially China)” (33:10)
• Crypto’s rise actually attracted a younger generation to gold: “It brought an entire young generation into the realization that fiat currency is risky…now really love gold, because…there’s no risk of somebody…stealing my crypto.” (34:48)

Agnico’s Strategy

• Second largest gold company by market cap and production.
• Focused on “tier one” (geologically and politically safe) jurisdictions: “At $5,000 an ounce gold, governments in other countries are looking at those mines and saying, ‘we want a piece of that.’” (36:56)
• Growth: Adding “another million and a half ounces a year production” over five years.

Gold Market Supply/Demand

• Only 2% of supply replaced each year.
• No rapid new mine development expected; “To build a new gold mine…is probably a 10 or 15 year project.” (37:59)

Shareholder Returns

• Agnico has raised dividends quarter after quarter for 42 years.
• June: “Most of our shareholders want us to do share buybacks... it’s their money, not our money. And while we’re making a lot of money, they’re going to benefit from that.” (40:11)

6. The Lightning Round [41:08]

Cramer answers a rapid-fire series of stock questions:

• American Towers: “Fewer demand for towers, it’s no longer as investable.”
• AppLovin: Great momentum, but multiple is too high.
• MPLX/Marathon Petroleum: Good income stock for older investors.
• MVGS: Likes LNG transport space, prefers Enterprise Product Partners.
• Pure Storage: Good tech and buyback, but expensive multiple—avoid if rates spike.

7. Nvidia: The Ultimate “Battleground Stock” [44:53]

• Despite leading the AI chips revolution, Nvidia’s business is constantly questioned:
  • Recent $2B investment in CoreWeave sparked concerns of “vendor financing” (which Cramer disputes).
• “Nvidia…has more business than to do with…In the end all that matters will be the numbers.”
• Cramer remains bullish after speaking with CEO Jensen Huang: “My words of advice to the sellers after talking to Jensen today: Own Nvidia, don’t trade it.” (48:28)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Market News:

  • “The stock market doesn’t care. I did not say that I thought the market would go down because weather crippled most of the country.” (Cramer, 04:29)

• On Meta’s Capex:

  • “If we get a gigantic capex projection, it’s going to be tough for Meta to rally.” (Cramer, 15:57)

• On Apple:

  • “Apple really doesn’t get enough credit for sidestepping the massive spending commitments…Own Apple, don’t trade it.” (Cramer, 20:35)

• On Gold vs Crypto:

  • “What crypto might have done, Jim, is it brought a entire young generation into the realization that fiat currency is risky…now really love gold…” (Amara June, 34:48)

• On EquipmentShare:

  • “It deserves to [trade at a premium] because it’s revolutionizing this industry with its asset light business model and impressive software platform.” (Cramer, 28:27)

• On Nvidia:

  • “Jensen’s biggest problem is how to keep customers satisfied with their smaller allocations. The CoreWeave deal helps address that problem.” (Cramer, 48:11)

Major Timestamps & Segments

| Timestamp | Segment / Content | |-----------|-------------------| | 01:41 | Market rationality vs. headline noise | | 08:34 | Callers: Broadcom, Costco | | 13:15 | Earnings preview: Meta, Microsoft, Tesla, Apple | | 22:59 | EquipmentShare IPO analysis | | 32:54 | Interview: Amara June, CEO of Agnico Eagle Mines | | 41:08 | Lightning Round | | 44:53 | Segment: Nvidia as a battleground stock |

Conclusion

This Mad Money episode provides Cramer’s actionable insight on navigating news vs. fundamentals, what to watch in the busiest earnings week of the quarter (with critical context on the biggest tech names), the promise of the EquipmentShare IPO, and a timely look at the gold rally and miners through an expert lens. The episode wraps with the Lightning Round and a passionate defense of holding, not trading, foundational stocks like Nvidia and Apple.

Cramer’s overall bottom line:
Stay focused on company fundamentals, ignore the noise, don’t overreact to headlines, and own—but don’t trade—the best-performing growth stocks.