Jim Cramer is getting more bullish by the day! In fact, he's discovered four signs that could be signaling that the market is becoming healthier: buying in the technology sector, crude oil prices rising, consolidation in the pharmaceutical sector and bullish price action in Goldman Sachs Group (GS) and Morgan Stanley (MS).
Despite Cramer’s rising optimism, he was also cautious of President Obama’s proposed resolution-trust-type “bad bank” plan. Cramer noticed how the financial sector soared higher on the bad-bank news on Wednesday, but he warned investors that it’s too early to get excited, because we don’t know what Obama’s vision for the bad bank is just yet.
The bottom line: Cramer is starting to warm up to stocks, but that doesn’t mean it’s time to bet the farm with so many uncertainties swirling around Wall Street.
Recently, Cramer found opportunities in two bank stocks, tech stocks and six quick pick stocks. Here are some Cramer highlights from over the past week as aggregated from his "Mad Money" TV show, the "Stop Trading!" segment on CNBC and his RealMoney blog posts (these blog post require a RealMoney subscription).
Cramer’s Dangerous Debt Stocks: Cramer highlighted a number of stocks that are overleveraged and have too much debt. In a Jan. 26 blog post, he wrote: “This weekend, as I went through the charts, I was amazed at how low some stocks have gone, stocks that I would normally say to just take a flyer on, but turn out to have so much debt, short- and long-term, that they are just too dangerous.” Cramer’s Dangerous Debt Stocks include Legg Mason (LM) and Las Vegas Sands (LVS).
Cramer’s Six Quick Picks: Cramer sees a buying opportunity in six specific stocks. On Tuesday’s CNBC “Stop Trading!” segment, Cramer said: “I am impressed by U.S. Steel (X) management during this downturn. They did not see it coming for the most part.” Cramer’s Six Quick Picks include Quanta Services (PWR) and Caterpillar (CAT).
Cramer’s Four Signs of Life: Cramer has spotted four signs of health in the stock market. On Monday’s “Mad Money” episode, Cramer told viewers that the second sign of health in the market is rising crude oil prices. Cramer’s Four Signs of Life include Google (GOOG) and Geron (GERN).
Cramer’s Two Banks Worth Owning: Which bank stocks should investors buy? On Wednesday’s “Mad Money” episode, Cramer said: “These are the only two who don't need any help.” Cramer’s Two Banks Worth Owning include JPMorgan Chase (JPM).
Cramer’s Tech Stocks to Keep an Eye On: Cramer thinks investors should put the tech sector on their radar. In a Jan. 28 blog post, he wrote: “I can't stress to you how important it is that this rally in tech hang in. We don't have a lot of shorts in tech anymore, so I would believe that it is real buying.” Cramer’s Tech Stocks to Keep an Eye On include Cisco Systems (CSCO) and Apple Computer (AAPL).
Cramer’s Mother of All Tells: Is there a specific stock that acts as a “tell” for the direction of the U.S. stock market? In a Jan. 23 blog post, Cramer wrote: “No one stock has ever dominated the S&P like this one. If you can manipulate it upward - oh, stop with the innocence, you can manipulate anything with this SEC on the case -- you can get a rally started.” Cramer’s Mother of All Tells portfolio includes Wal-Mart (WMT) and Verizon Communications (VZ).
(Editor's note: At the time of publication and/or original publication of his posts and shows, Cramer owned Wal-Mart, JPMorgan, Quanta and Cisco for his Action Alerts PLUS charitable trust.)
Posted on Jan. 30, 2009
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