The markets got a holiday break Monday after the Dow shed 5.2% last week. The bulk of last week's loss was attributed to Wall Street's reaction to the lack of detail in Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner's "bad bank" plan.
So, what can we expect in the holiday-shortened trading week?
Investors will continue to watch Washington as President Obama is expected to sign the stimulus plan into law and more detail on the administration's plan to deal with the foreclosure crisis will be announced.
Meanwhile, General Motors (GM) and Chrysler must submit viability plans to the Treasury on Tuesday as part of their agreement for TARP funds. And as earnings season winds down, Wal-Mart (WMT), Hewlett Packard (HPQ) and Chesapeake Energy (CHK), among others, are expected to report.
With this in mind, we thought we'd take a look at some of the stocks people have been searching for on TheStreet.com and see what Jim Cramer's had to say about them lately.
These stocks could be in the news for a number of reasons. Some require immediate attention while others may not. Regardless, it never hurts to hear what Cramer (or any of the other professional investors on the site) has to say about them. The key is to gather as much information as you can in order to make the most informed investment decisions you can.
In a recent post to his RealMoney blog, Cramer had this to say about Transocean (RIG):
"Where is this oil breakdown? When will it occur? I still keep thinking that people should recognize that there has been a huge cessation in drilling and we are simply dealing, once again, with a glitch in the system where refining is behind and oil is brimming in storage.
"More important, it isn't like we are in a situation where the lack of drilling can last. All week I have been debating the merits of Transocean, the best-acting stock in the book, with one of the best charts, and one that is blessed by both Dan Fitzpatrick and Doug Kass, and my colleague Matt Horween, who works with me to investigate stocks and their balance sheets.
"I have been dubious about RIG only because as rigs come off contract they will not be renewed at the ridiculously high rates that they were set at during the multiyear run-up in oil.
"That said, it is because of that fear you have a 4-times-earnings stock. It is the rough equivalent of a drug company with key expensive drugs going off patent. The major difference, which I should have pointed out on "Mad Money," is that the rigs don't go "generic" -- they just get less expensive to rent. The idea of $700,000-a-day rates is probably over. But that doesn't mean there won't be $500,000-a-day rates in 2012 ... or higher if oil goes up higher. There are not a lot of new deepwater rigs being built, because those orders are being canceled. It is very hard to cancel a RIG order because of the big down payment.
"I am willing to make a case for Transocean, not on the rig dayrates but because I simply don't believe that oil is so awash around the globe that oil can stay down here, even with diminished demand. Only three countries are exploring now as aggressively as they were six months ago: Brazil, Algeria and Libya. That's really about it. The national oils are really all that matters. The big integrateds just don't have enough exploration potential to affect the price.
"So, I get the story. I am partial to Schlumberger (SLB) because it is really well run and it also has long-term contracts, but they aren't anywhere as ironclad as RIG's.
Therefore, I bless RIG, too. Reluctantly, because it has much more volatility. But if I think oil's going higher, why fight the chart or the tape?"
For more of what Cramer's had to say about Friday's top-searched stocks, including Best Buy (BBY), American Campus Communities (ACC) and Dendreon (DD), check out the Cramer's Take portfolio on Stockpickr.
Updated on Feb. 17, 2009
(Editor's note: At the time of publication and/or original publication of his posts and shows, Cramer owned Abbott, General Mills, Hewlett-Packard and Wal-Mart for his Action Alerts PLUS charitable trust.)
P.S. Try Jim Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS -- FREE
