Jim Cramer Blog

Stick with agriculture and recession stocks, Jim Cramer said on CNBC's "Stop Trading!" segment Friday.
"Mosaic (MOS) is terrific. ... I think Agrium (AGU) is a catch-up ... to Mosaic," Cramer said. "You're going to do better with that than ... betting against Procter (PG)."
More broadly, Cramer believes the market is frantic as shorts try to cover their bets on the bond insurers. "Today's a big short-squeeze day. 'Let's short squeeze Ambac (ABK) and MBIA (MBI).'"
In the financial sector, Cramer expects more take-unders like Bank of America's (BAC) purchase of Countrywide (CFC). He foresees Washington Mutual (WM) on the auction block, adding that CEO "Kerry Killinger is doing his best to do a bad job. ... Washington Mutual at $15 is like Countrywide at $8."
Cramer encouraged investors to play conservatively. "I would be partial to Coke (KO)," he said, adding that he was encouraged that commodity prices are down for the soft-drink company. Pepsi (PEP) is another good pick, he added.
Published By TheStreet.com

Labels: AGU, BAC, CFC, CNBC's Stop Trading, Jim Cramer, KO, MBI, MOS, PEP, PG, WM

Amback (ABK), Wachovia (WB), Countrywide Financial (CFC), MGIC (MTG), Washington Mutual (WM), Fannie Mae (FNM), Freddie Mac (FRE), Pepsico (PEP), Colgate (CL), Procter and Gamble (PG), Diageo (DEO)
Cramer said the Fed's liquidity strategy is going to make banks suffer more and noted the bad performance of ABK, WB, CFC, MTG, WM, FNM and FRE. He said favorite defensive stocks PEP, CL, PG and DEO were thriving. Cramer called on the Fed to vacate its Ivory Tower and find out what is really going on in the market.
Apple (AAPL), Hewlett-Packard (HPQ), Google (GOOG), Research in Motion (RIMM), Intel (INTC), Nvidia (NVDA), Texas Instruments (TXN), Sigma Designs (SIGM), AT &T (T)
Cramer commented if the Fed had cut half a point, there would be more stocks to recommend, but with a quarter point interest rate reduction, it looks like slim pickings, except for tech. His perennial favorites in the sector: AAPL, HPQ, GOOG, RIMM, INTC, NVDA, TXN are in great shape, Cramer said.
In addition, Cramer singled out Sigma Designs as a play on the decline of cable companies and as comparable services are provided by telephone companies. AT &T announced it is spending $5 billion on its U-verse TV service, and Sigma, which designs the chips for service, will benefit. Analysts raised their price targets after Sigma reported a fantastic quarter, and the company has a high quality problem of not making enough chips to meet demand. Cramer suggests letting SIGM come down a bit before buying.
Published By SeekingAlpha

Labels: AAPL, ABK, CFC, CL, DEO, FNM, FRE, GOOG, HPQ, INTC, Jim Cramer, Mad Money, MTG, NVDA, PEP, PG, RIMM, TXN, WB, WM

Pepsi (PEP): stock went down almost 2 points. The quarterly report showed that the raw costs hurt the numbers in many of their domestic products, and thinks that many people are concerned that price increases will hurt sales. Pepsi CEO Indra Nooyi was on the show to discuss the numbers, which she was very happy with. Nooyi thinks they can handle increased commodity costs and that earning will continue to increase.
Next, Cramer dressed up like a matador and talked about a Spanish stock. Cramer thinks that Spain has a good bull market, and that Banco Santander (STD) will prosper from its home market and the strength of the Euro compared to the US. Cramer said STD will make some acquisitions in the US and Latin America, growing and diversifying the bank's asset base. Cramer could see the stock making a 20% increase in the stock and a dividend increase as well.
Cramer took a couple of phone calls. First caller asked about Wells Fargo (WFC), and Cramer said that he likes the stock, but not as much as STD. The next caller asked about the Commerce Bank (CBH) merger, and Cramer said that the market had already priced an acquisition into the stock price in that case. The next caller asked about Banco Popular (BPOP), and Cramer said that he is not willing to buy that stock.
Sell Block
Cramer focused on the reasons you should sell Chipotle (CMG). Cramer is sad to see the stock go, but it is up 200% since he originally recommended it, and doesn't like the stock at this price.
PetSmart (PETM) CEO of the company was on the show. He discussed the fact that some of the company's sales are affected by weather patterns, and warmer weather hurts profits. Cramer still recommends the stock.
Finally, Cramer said that you should sell any Allegheny Technologies (ATI) stock you might have left from his recommendation of it last year.

Labels: ATI, CBH, CMG, Jim Cramer, Mad Money, Mad MOney Recap, PEP, PETM, STD, WFC

PepsiCo Inc., the huge beverage and snack foods maker, said Thursday its third-quarter profit rose 17 percent on the strength of its international division and a tax benefit.
The owner of the world's second biggest soft drink company and the Frito-Lay snacks maker earned $1.74 billion, or $1.06 per share, for the quarter ended Sept. 8, up from $1.49 billion, or 89 cents per share, a year earlier.
Revenue rose 11 percent to $10.17 billion from $9.13 billion last year.
Analysts polled by Thomson Financial had predicted earnings of 96 cents per share on revenue of $9.91 billion.

Labels: PEP, Pepsico Inc.

Here are 7 stocks for traders for Thursday from TradingMarkets.com:
Fastenal (NasdaqGS:FAST - News) reports earnings on Thursday morning before the bell, with analysts looking for $0.42 EPS. FAST's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
M&T Bank (NYSE:MTB - News) should report $1.94 EPS on Thursday before the market opens. MTB's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
Analysts are watching for SLM Corporation (NYSE:SLM - News) to announce $0.73 EPS when the company reports tomorrow morning. SLM's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.
PepsiCo (NYSE:PEP - News) is looking to announce $0.96 EPS on Thursday before the bell. PEP's PowerRating (for Traders) is 6.
When Safeway (NYSE:SWY - News) reports quarterly results on Thursday morning, watch for $0.44 EPS. SWY's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
Winnebago Industries (NYSE:WGO - News) looks set to report $0.41 EPS tomorrow morning. WGO's PowerRating (for Traders) is 3.
Popular (NasdaqGS:BPOP - News) reports earnings after the close on Thursday, so watch for heightened price action and volatility ahead of the bell. BPOP's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.

Labels: BPOP, FAST, Hot Stocks, MTB, PEP, SLM, SWY, WGO

Technology
Stocks like Apple (AAPL) and Research In Motion (RIMM) are hitting new highs daily but the semiconductor stocks are not. Carter Worth, chief market technician at Oppenheimer found an incredible divergence with the semis declining by 30% against the S&P 500 tech stocks. Macke agrees and would play this divergence by going long Intel (INTC). Worth also noted that investment banks like Goldman Sachs (GS) were flying, but money central banks like Citigroup (C) were doing nothing.
Super Market
Firms like Coke (KO), Pepsi (PEP), Proctor & Gamble (PG) and Colgate (CL) will get to show investors how good business is. Macke thinks PG is doing the best and also favors Molson Coors (TAP) and Pepsi (PEP). Macke isn't positive on Clorox (CX).
Oil Trade
Oil rebounded back to over $80 on Tuesday and the Oil Services HOLDRs (OIH) followed the commodity to the upside. Seymour: play it by buying oil service companies with exposure to regions like Russia and the Caspian Sea, such as Halliburton (HAL) and Baker-Hughes (BHI). Najarian would avoid the Oil Services HOLDRs because it is over weighted with Schlumberger (SLB).
Word on the StreetMosaic (MOS) reported monster earnings on Tuesday and the stock soared. Najarian points out that there are buyers of the October $90 calls on Monsanto (MON) which operates in the same space as Mosaic.
SABMiller and Molson Coors (TAP) announced plans to combine U.S. operations in a new firm to be named MillerCoors. Macke suggests they combined so they can go after Anheuser-Busch (BUD), which the hidden winner is Altria (MO), which has a 28% stake in SABMiller. Seymour favors international beverage plays Companhia de Bebidas (ABV) and Fomento (FMX).
Alcoa (AA) falls short of Wall Street's estimates.
Macke warns investors to expect a lot of misses like the one on Tuesday from Childrens Place (PLCE).
Worth recommends shorting Nordstrom (JWN), Tiffany (TIF) and Coach (COH).
Pops & Drops
Pops- Yum! Brands (YUM) traded up 5%
ValueClick (VCLK) traded up 10%
Miramar Mining (MNG) popped 24% after Newmont Mining (NEM) bought the firm for $1.5 billion.
Altair Nanotechnologies (ALTI) exploded higher by 31% after the firm demonstrated its battery pack in an electric car.
California Pizza Kitchen (CPKI) traded up 5%.
Drops- Coach (COH) fell 3% off a bearish Bloomberg report.
Face2Face
Nokia (VCLK): Writer asked does it still have upside potential or should I cut my losses? Najarian: wait till the takeover of NAVTEQ (NVT) is digested, and then it will move higher.
Next writer made a good profit in XM Radio (XMSR), buying in at $8 and $9. Should they sell some XM and then buy some Sirius (SIRI)? Make says yes.
Final Trade
Macke recommends Johnson & Johnson (JNJ).
Worth: short Black & Decker (BDK).
Najarian: Cypress (CY).
Seymour: play international oil services with Integra Group.
Ned Riley, the CEO of Riley Asset Management says stay long PowerShares QQQ Trust (QQQQ).

Labels: AAPL, CL, CNBC, CX, Fast Money, Fast Money Recap, GS, INTC, KO, PEP, RIMM, TAP

After the Dow hit an all-time high yesterday, stocks were mixed on the session today. Wall Street cooled off some, with only the Nasdaq holding on to a modest gain among the three major indices. The dollar rebounded against the euro and gained versus the yen, which helped send commodity prices lower including a dip in oil and gold prices. Investors moved cautiously as they weighed the latest reading from the housing sector and sales from the nation's automakers.
In economic news, The National Association of Realtors' pending home sales index fell to a record low of 85.5 from an upwardly revised 91.4 reading in July. The drop was worse than expected by economists, who had predicted a -2% dip from the previous reading. The steep decline breaks the previous low of 89.8, which was set in September 2001, following the terrorist attacks that knocked consumer confidence. The trade group started the index in 2001.
Overall U.S. auto sales were soft in September on mixed reports from General Motors (NYSE: GM - News), which saw its overall sales of cars and light trucks edge up 0.3% in September, and Ford (NYSE: F - News), which saw sales plummet more than -20% for the same month.
On the earnings front, investors are growing increasingly impatient with smartphone pioneer Palm (Nasdaq: PALM - News) following the company's lackluster earnings release delivered after the market close yesterday. Palm announced that it had lost -$841,000, or -1 cent per share, in the first quarter on revenue that increased to $360.8 million. Palm's outlook didn't do much to raise investor confidence as the company is expecting a current quarter loss of -1 cent to -3 cents per share on revenue between $370 million and $380 million. On an adjusted basis, it expects a profit of 6-8 cents per share versus analyst estimates of 11 cents per share on sales of $413.5 million. Shares slumped -3.4%.
Shares of Pepsi Bottling Group (NYSE: PBG - News) reached an all-time high today after the largest bottler for PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP - News) reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit on Tuesday. The company said net income for the third quarter, which ended September 8th, rose 26% to $260 million, or $1.12 per share, from $207 million, or 86 cents per share, a year ago. The company also raised its full-year outlook. The stock rose 2.1%.
The M&A world saw Canada's TD Bank Financial Group (NYSE: TD - News) double its U.S. presence today when it acquired Mid-Atlantic regional bank Commerce Bancorp (NYSE: CBH - News) for $8.5 billion in cash and stock. As a result of the takeover, TD Bank will add nearly 460 branches along the East Coast when the deal closes in the spring of 2008, pending regulatory approval. Terms call for a 75% stock and 25% cash transaction that values Commerce at $42 per share, a 6% premium over the stock's closing price of $39.61 on Monday. Details have Commerce shareholders receiving 0.4142 shares of TD Bank common stock and $10.50 in cash for each share of Commerce owned.
Citigroup (NYSE: C - News) continued to reach into the world's second-largest economy by announcing earlier today that it would complete its acquisition of Japanese brokerage firm Nikko by paying $4.6 billion to buy out the remaining minority shareholders.
By the BullMarket.com Staff

Labels: C, CBH, F, Ford Motor co., General Motors Corp., GM, PALM, Palm Inc., PBG, PEP, Pepsico Inc., TD

Bullish:
Coca-Cola (KO) or Pepsi (PEP)
Investools (SWIM): Cramer likes the stock.
Skyworks (SWKS): Cramer likes this stock and RF Micro (RFMD) until the end of the year, and then he thinks it will be time to get out.
Media (FMCN) or Baidu.com (BIDU).
Best Buy (BBY) instead of Circuit City.
Under Armour (UA): Cramer thinks this quarter is going to be good, and that UA is the place to be.
Aircastle (AYR): Cramer likes the good yield, but the stock is not exciting.
Kraft (KFT)
Oracle (ORCL) is the better software play.
Bearish:
Melco (MPEL): Cramer thinks that they know nothing about the casino business. "Sell, sell, sell!"
China Precision (CPSL): Cramer thinks this is a sell, and that you should go with Focus.
Circuit City (CC): Cramer thinks there is nothing there
Invesco (IVZ): Go with T. Rowe Price (TROW) instead.
Level 3 Communications (LVLT): Cramer thinks you should stay away and that he needs to have the CEO on the show.
Tellabs (TLAB): Don't Buy, Don't Buy, Don't Buy.
ADM (ADM): Cramer thinks that this is a lost company
Lance (LNCE): Don't buy
Red Hat (RHT): Cramer doesn't like Red Hat
Jones Soda (JSDA): Stay away from

Labels: AYR, BBY, BIDU, FMCN, Jim Cramer, KFT, KO, Lightning Round, Mad Money, ORCL, PEP, RFMD, SWIM, SWKS, UA

Bullish:
PepsiCo (PEP), BEA Systems (BEAS), General Motors (GM), RRSat Global Communications Network (RRST), Zumiez (ZUMZ), Superior Offshore International (DEEP), Oshkosh Truck (OSK), Northrop Grumman, L-3 Communications (LLL), Lockheed Martin (LMT), General Dynamics (GD), Cisco Systems (CSCO), XTO Energy (XTO), GMX Resources (GMXR), Siemens (SI), Transocean (RIG), Schlumberger (SLB), Prudential Financial (PRU), MetLife (MET) and Halliburton (HAL).
Bearish:
Smart Balance (SMBL), Parametric Technology (PMTC), DirecTV (DTV), Parker Drilling (PKD) and Assurant (AIZ).

Labels: BEAS, CSCO, DEEP, GD, GM, GMXR, Jim Cramer, Lightning Round, LLL, LMT, Mad Money, OSK, PEP, PRU, RIG, RRST, SI, SLB, XTO, ZUMZ

PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP - News), Pfizer (NYSE: PFE - News), Schering-Plough (NYSE: SGP - News), Kellogg (NYSE: K - News), General Mills (NYSE: GIS - News), Altria (NYSE: MO - News), CVS Caremark (NYSE: CVS - News), MedcoHealth (NYSE: MHS - News), Cardinal Health (NYSE: CAH - News)
Cramer says almost everyone, including him, is "getting killed" in this market, and he wants viewers to understand "why it's so cataclysmic out there, so at least they have the grounding to say, 'OK, I'm willing to ride this out." While some suggest getting out of stocks, Cramer recognizes many people invest for the long term. However, he added; "What I'm trying to do is focus on what can work and what will really be hurt, not what's working, because nothing's working." Cramer said he got through the credit crunch in 1990s by focusing on the bull market and on 20 stocks that weren't losing. Examples may be PEP, PFE, SGP, K, GIS, MO, CVS, MHS, CAH. While he may have 10 to 1 bears out of every stock pile, Cramer urges viewers to "recognize that as the Federal Reserve continues to do a de facto tightening, you're going to continue to have spillover."
Published by SeekingAlpha

Labels: CAH, CVS, GIS, Jim Cramer, K, MHS, MO, PEP, pfe, SGP, Wall Street Confidential

Pepsi (NYSE: PEP - News), Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG - News), Schering-Plough (NYSE: SGP - News) and Pfizer (NYSE: PFE - News): Cramer says the household goods sector is healthy given Pepsi's rise after Goldman Sach's downgrade. He also likes PG and SGP. He commented this sector did well during the 1990s' credit crisis which he compares to current subprime woes. Cramer would even think about Pfizer on the principle that "if anything good happens at Pfizer, you've got a good upside."

Labels: Jim Cramer, PEP, pfe, PG, SGP, Stop Trading

Wall Street Casino: Cisco (NasdaqGS: CSCO - News), Under Armour (NYSE: UA - News), Coke (NYSE: K - News), Pepsi (NYSE: PEP - News), Level 3 Communications (NasdaqGS: LVLT - News)
Cramer compared the stock market to a poker table at the Fed's casino where Ben Bernanke can change the rules at will. Everyone thought John Chambers, CEO of Cisco, was bluffing when he said networking was strong and announced a big buyback five days before the end of the quarter, but it turned out he was holding a full house. Cramer doesn't think Cisco's luck has run out yet, and thinks LVLT also has a "hot" hand. Under Armour had a poker face all quarter and showed a straight flush. Everyone sees Coke and Pepsi's hand, comments Cramer, and they will always have three of a kind, which is good in the current environment. However, financials have such "crummy" hands that they don't even try to fake it anymore.

CEO Interview: Mackey McDonald, VF Corp. (NYSE: VFC - News)
Cramer praised VFC for focusing on its brands and for expanding overseas while the domestic retail sector has been challenged lately. McDonald said the consumer is still buying, but is concentrating on high-quality products. "having a portfolio of strong brands is extremely important," he added, "We're always looking for additional brands. We establish a target list of areas we're not strong in that we want to be strong in. We find the best brands to fit those needs and try to make the best acquisitions we can." Cramer says VFC doesn't need the American consumer to thrive.
Mad Mail: Hitting Home
When a viewer asked Cramer if a cut in interest rates will be bad for the dollar and harm investor holdings relative to the rest of the world, he said he doesn't care about dollars and tariffs, but is concerned about millions of Americans who are faced with the prospect of losing their homes.
Published By SeekingAlpha

Labels: CSCO, Jim Cramer, K, LVLT, Mad Money, PEP, UA, VFC

Lehman (NYSE: LEH - News), JP Morgan (NYSE: JPM - News) and Bear Stearns (NYSE: BSC - News): After Thursday's carnage, Cramer has put financials on probation, and outlined necessary factors that would allow these stocks to perform again. First, Wall Street should cut its estimates, second, there should be layoffs in mortgage and corporate bonds departments. Third, the companies have to keep better track of what they have been losing to sub-prime debt and hung bridge loans. Cramer would stay away from JPM because of its connection with corporate debt and would not touch any housing stocks.
Pepsi (NYSE: PEP - News), Kellog (NYSE: K - News), Bunge (NYSE: BG - News), Celgene (NasdaqGS: CELG - News), Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB - News): Cramer would go "bottom fishing" in soft goods, such as Pepsi, which is down and Kellogg, whose quarter was "thing of beauty." He also likes agriculture and healthcare, especially BG and Celgene. Since Exxon is not drilling enough oil, Cramer predicts SLB will be called upon to come to the rescue. He also reiterated his praise for the tech sector which is "hot" in late summer.

Labels: BG, BSC, CELG, Jim Cramer, Jim Cramer's Stop Trading, JPM, K, LEH, PEP, SLB

Bull Meat Barbecue
Although Thursday's selloff resembled a "bull meat barbecue," Cramer encouraged viewers not to lose heart and reiterated his principle that there is always a bull market somewhere. He made a checklist of three kinds of stocks to avoid: Stocks, such as housing, which need low interest rates to go higher, stocks (restaurants, retail etc.) with too much leverage to the domestic economy, and companies which must borrow to make an acquisition. Cramer emphasized the importance of selling these stocks, especially for those who did not lighten their portfolios before the selloff and those who cannot take the pain and wait for these sectors to recover.
Game Plan for Next Week: Pepsi (NYSE: PEP - News), Colgate (NYSE: CL - News), Kellogg (NYSE: K - News), Kimberly Clark (NYSE: KMB - News), Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT - News), Foster-Wheeler (NasdaqGS: FWLT - News), Freeport McMoRan (NYSE: FCX - News), Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB - News), Halliburton (NYSE: HAL - News), Boeing (NYSE: BA - News), Bunge (NYSE: BG - News), Monsanto (NYSE: MON - News), Dell (NasdaqGS: DELL - News), Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ - News), Cisco Systems (NasdaqGS: CSCO - News), Celgene (NasdaqGS: CELG - News), Merck (NYSE: MRK - News), Medco Health (NYSE: MHS - News)
Because on The Street, a trauma does not usually follow a trauma, Cramer expects a bounce at least by Monday, and would get rid of financials, retail and restaurants and buy soft goods, such as PEP, CL, K and KMB. Dismissing worries of a potential worldwide slowdown, Cramer likes machinery and mining, particularly CAT, FWLT and FCX. He also recommends oil, although natural gas has been tricky, and his picks are SLB and HAL. Cramer's favorites among aerospace and agriculture include BA, BG and MON, and he adds the tech sector has been hot and would buy DELL, HPQ and CSCO. In the healthcare sector, he especially likes CELG and MHS and doesn't mind MRK.
Pscyhed Up with Sycamore Networks (NasdaqGM: SCMR - News)
After the selloff devastation, there is still one thing Cramer can count on; that tech will continue to thrive in the late summer as it does every year. Cramer likes SCMR as a speculative telecom tech stock, since the company has almost a pure play on optical services. SCMR is not best-of-breed, but he is still bullish because SCMR does not yet have any analysts covering it and he likes SCMR's floor; it's at $4 a share but has the equivalent of $3.23 a share. In addition, the company's sales have been rising and 60% of its revenue is international. While SCMR is not as strong as Cisco or Cienna it could make investors more money.
Mad Money: Hoku Scientific (NasdaqGM: HOKU - News), Genzyme (NasdaqGS: GENZ - News), Celgene (NasdaqGS: CELG - News)
When a mailer asked about Hoku, Cramer recalls having recommended it at $6, and it has recently dropped from $11 to $8. At this level, Cramer says, it is too speculative, but he thinks it will repeat its upward trend after it falls back to $7 or $6. Another mailer wanted to know Cramer's opinion of GENZ; while the fall is good for biotech in general, he prefers Celgene to GENZ. On the issue of whether Freeport McMoRan's report of strong cash flow will be good for Caterpillar, Cramer says he likes CAT, but it has been hit hard for its North American exposure. While he says CAT is "your best play" he adds currently he is "loathe to buy more."
Published By SeekingAlpha

Labels: BA, BG, CAT, CELG, CL, CSCO, DELL, FCX, FWLT, HAL, HPQ, Jim Cramer, K, KMB, Mad Money, MHS, MON, MRK, PEP, SLB

CEO Interview: Indra Nooyi, PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP - News)
"The stocks are saying there's going to be a slowdown, so it would be wise for you to prepare for it," said Cramer, and while he isn't urging people to sell all their cyclicals yet, he suggests its time to take some profits. He invited Pepsi CEO and chairman Indra Nooyi onto the show to discuss the company's great performance which she said was due to the company's diverse portfolio and stellar management. Nooyi added, in terms of financial resources, Pepsi is not constrained, and in terms of people-resources, North America is growing and the company's international business is "exploding." Cramer mentioned a Wall Street Journal story that Nestle turned down a merger with Pepsi because it considers the latter company junk-food laden. Nooyi pointed out Pepsi's expansion into non-carbonated beverages and healthy snacks and its production process which conserves energy and water. Cramer remarked Pepsi delivered better than expected numbers and is a the right stock to buy.
Remember the AlaMobile: Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN - News), Nokia (NYSE: NOK - News), Ericsson (NasdaqGS: ERIC - News), Sony (NYSE: SNE - News), Analog Devices (NYSE: ADI - News), National Semiconductor (NYSE: NSM - News)
With back -to-school tech gadgets in production, Cramer discussed TXN which was hit by a selloff; "I don't care about the quarter," he said. "I care about the future, because that is where we're going to make our money." He would use the decline as a buying opportunity, and thinks its mobile business will energize TXN. He added NOK, ERIC, SNE, ADI and NSM are also doing well. Returning to TXN, Cramer predicts the next quarter will be excellent and adds the company has a "massive rest-of-world" exposure.

Go Cisco (NasdaqGS: CSCO - News)! with Juniper Networks (NasdaqGS: JNPR - News), and Ciena (NasdaqGS: CIEN - News)
Cramer discussed a Financial Times interview during which Cisco CEO John Chambers says he's more enthusiastic about the company than he has been in a decade and the internet is entering a second phase which should last 10 to 15 years. Since Cisco provides the "backbone" for many types of communcation, Cramer doubts Chambers is just trying to sell his company, and notes Cisco rivals are delivering but have less upside than Cisco. Cramer noted Cisco is not expensive, is below its 52-week high, has $22 billion in cash and is protected from the ailing economy with its big international exposure.
Mad Mail: Six Flags (NYSE: SIX - News), Men's Wearhouse (NYSE: MW - News)
Cramer told one viewer not to touch financial stocks. He said he doesn't like SIX's balance sheet, and added the stock will do badly if the weather is not good. He told another mailer he doesn't like Men's Warehouse.
Published By SeekingAlpha

Labels: ADI, CIEN, CSCO, ERIC, Jim Cramer, JNPR, Mad Money, MW, NOK, NSM, PEP, SIX, SNE, TXN

The major market averages all closed decidedly lower on the session, with the Dow closing down -226 points and the tech-heavy Nasdaq losing nearly -51 points. The broader S&P 500 also ended the session lower by -30 points. Equities sold off amid continued weakness in the mortgage markets as was evident with earnings news out by one of its largest players. Investors did not get much of a boost from a sell-off in the price of crude, as prices ended down -$1.33.
Corporate earnings continued to stream in on the day. Chemical giant DuPont (NYSE: DD - News) reported earnings of $972 million, or $1.04 a share, compared to earnings of $975 million, or $1.04 a share, a year ago. Sales grew 6% to $7.9 billion in the period ended June 30th. Analysts were expecting the company to report EPS of $1.06 a share on sales of $7.86 billion. It cited weak auto and housing industries that contributed to the miss on both EPS and revenue. Shares finished the session down -6.3%.
The biggest U.S. mortgage lender, Countrywide Financial (NYSE: CFC - News), reported a -33% drop in earnings to $485 million, or 81 cents a share, compared to earnings of $722.2 million, or $1.15 a share, last year. Revenue fell -15% in the latest quarter to $2.55 billion. The lender also slashed its 2007 profit forecast to $2.70-3.30 a share, down from its April estimate of $3.50-4.30 a share.
Not all earnings were lackluster, however, as beverage giant PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP - News) said earnings rose to $1.56 billion, or 94 cents a share. Total revenues rose 10% to $9.61 billion, from 8.71 billion a year ago. The results easily topped Wall Street analyst estimates of 89 cents a share. The company now sees 2007 EPS of $3.35, compared to previous estimates of $3.30. In the defense arena, Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT - News) said profits rose citing strength in all four of its major divisions. For the second quarter, the company reported earnings of $778 million, or $1.82 a share, up from $580 million, or $1.34 a share, in the year-ago period. Sales rose to $10.65 billion. The results handily beat analyst estimates of a profit of $1.53 a share. The defense contractor also raised its 2007 profit forecast to $6.65-6.80 a share, up from $6.20-6.35 a share, and upped its sales guidance to $41-41.75 billion, up from its previous view of $40.35-41.35 billion. Shares rose 3.6% on the session.
Elsewhere, financial services company American Express (NYSE: AXP - News) posted a 12% rise in quarterly profit fueled by cardmember spending. Net income totaled $1.1 billion, or 88 cents a share, up form $945 million, or 77 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Revenue net of interest expense rose 9% to $7.1 billion, up from $6.5 billion. Analysts were looking for EPS of 86 cents. Shares of Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX - News), meanwhile, rose 6.9% after the firm reported results that beat analyst EPS estimates by 5 cents. Earnings rose 7% to $141.3 million, or 73 cents per share, up from $132 million, or 66 cents per share, a year ago.
By the BullMarket.com Staff

Labels: AXP, CFC, DD, DGX, LMT, PEP

PepsiCo Inc., the world's second-largest soft drink maker, said Tuesday its second-quarter profit rose 13 percent on the strength of sales in its international and Frito-Lay units, and raised its full-year earnings outlook.
But its shares waffled as the company announced declines for Gatorade sports drinks and Tropicana orange juice, contributing to a 1 percent slip in beverage volumes in North America.
The company also said the higher earnings reflected a lower quarterly tax rate and that results were dampened by higher raw materials costs that affected its profit margins internationally.
Profit for the quarter ended June 16 was $1.56 billion, or 94 cents per share, up from $1.38 billion, or 81 cents per share, a year earlier.
Revenue rose 10 percent to $9.6 billion from $8.71 billion last year.
Analysts polled by Thomson Financial had predicted 89 cents per share on revenue of $9.38 billion. Consensus estimates usually exclude one-time items.

Labels: PEP, Pepsico Inc.

Father's Day Special: Google (NasdaqGS: GOOG)
Devoting Thursday's program to Father's Day, Cramer thanked his father for encouraging him to read the stock pages early and getting him "hooked" on the game. When asked by an audience member if it is better to buy options of a viable, high-priced stock like Google rather than shares, Cramer replied he would prefer buying shares, even if one can afford only one share; "My take is just own the common stock -- don't out-think it ... buying one share of Google is a great way to get started."
The Russerts: Nike (NYSE: NKE)
Tim Russert, host of NBC's Meet the Press, and his son Luke joined Cramer and discussed their success with Nike which brought Luke's savings from $21,000 to $25,000. He also discussed the importance of teaching kids to save money and to work hard.
Family Therapist: Masco (NYSE: MAS), Coke (NYSE: KO) and Pepsi (NYSE: PEP)
Cramer played the role of family therapist for a mother, father and daughter who couldn't agree about whether or not to invest in MAS. He said MAS has been a "tremendous share taker" even though housing in sluggish, and would own the stock for the short and the long term. Concerning a father-daughter conflict over whether to own Pepsi or Coke, Cramer said "This is one of the toughest I have ever seen." While the father was correct that Coke is strong internationally, the daughter was also right to favor Pepsi, since it is growing faster than Coke. Cramer would stay with Coke for the remainder of the year, but for the next five years, his pick is Pepsi.
Icahn's Dad
Carl Icahn came onto the program and discussed his father, an intellectual type, who told Carl that he would not make money in business. However, his father taught him the "power of education." When Cramer asked Carl Icahn if he would choose to be lucky or good, Icahn replied, "the guy who works the hardest -- he gets the luckiest anyway."
Published By SeekingAlpha

Labels: GOOG, Jim Cramer, KO, Mad Money, MAS, NKE, PEP