On Thursday, Jim Cramer, the host of Mad Money, addressed the growing concerns surrounding the current tariff policies. He questioned the effectiveness of these tariffs as he asked:
“What’s the deal with these heavy-handed tariffs? Look, I’ve never been a dogmatic free trader. I believe in fair trade, a pretty fierce belief just so you know and we can only get that by lowering the boom on our trading partners who rip us off as a matter of policy.”
READ ALSO: Jim Cramer’s Take on These 10 Stocks and Jim Cramer’s Lightning Round: 8 Stocks in Focus.
Cramer explained that while he has always supported the idea of tariffs in principle, especially when they are part of a well-thought-out strategy, he expressed frustration over how the new trade regime is being executed. He said he was taken aback by how poorly the administration was rolling out these changes, which he felt lacked a clear and coherent plan. Cramer then pointed out what James Surowiecki, the author of The Wisdom of Crowds, said about how the White House is calculating tariffs.
“The White House simply took our trade deficit with each country and then divided it by that country’s exports to America. Then they cut that number in half to determine the tariff rate we’d be slapping on the country in question.”
Cramer noted that just hours later, an unnamed official from the White House confirmed this and described it as “the sum of all unfair trade practices, the sum of all cheating.” Cramer called it ill-advised. Later in the day, President Trump made a statement suggesting that he might be open to reducing tariffs if presented with “phenomenal” offers. However, Cramer raised an important question: “Who determines what those offers are, and what do they even mean?” He admitted that he had no clear answer to that question.
“Here’s the bottom line: I wish I could get behind this new tariff regime because I’ve never been a free trader ever. But the White House doesn’t seem to understand what it’s trying to do and the not-really-reciprocal tariffs we got yesterday could do tremendous damage to the US economy, of course including the stock market, without changing the bad behavior of our trading partners. To me, this has become a lose-lose, which is very tough to accept because I wanted tariffs to change things, not to wreck things.”
Our Methodology
For this article, we compiled a list of 10 stocks that were discussed by Jim Cramer during the episode of Mad Money aired on April 3. We listed the stocks in ascending order of their hedge fund sentiment as of the fourth quarter of 2024, which was taken from Insider Monkey’s database of over 1,000 hedge funds.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
10 Stocks on Jim Cramer’s Radar Recently
10. ABM Industries Incorporated (NYSE:ABM)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 14
A caller asked Cramer’s thoughts on ABM Industries Incorporated (NYSE:ABM) and he commented:
“I like that stock… Do you know… that no one in the 20 years of this show has ever asked me about a stock that I just like plain and simple? You’ve got a good one. It’s a janitorial as you alluded to, lighting, parking, security. This is the kind of company that Trump cannot hurt. He can wake up and say, how do I destroy ABM? And he can’t. It’s Trump proof.”
ABM Industries (NYSE:ABM) provides a wide range of integrated services, including janitorial, engineering, parking, and vehicle maintenance. The company posted its first-quarter fiscal 2025 results on March 12. It generated $2.1 billion in revenue, which was a 2.2% increase compared to the same period last year. It was driven by a 1.6% rise in organic growth and additional revenue from acquisitions.
ABM Industries (NYSE:ABM) net income for the quarter was $43.6 million, or $0.69 per diluted share, slightly lower than the previous year’s net income of $44.7 million, or $0.70 per diluted share. Adjusted EBITDA for the period was reported to be $120.6 million, with an adjusted EBITDA margin of 5.9%.
9. Ubiquiti Inc. (NYSE:UI)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 23
Noting its strong margins, a caller asked for Cramer’s current thoughts on Ubiquiti Inc. (NYSE:UI). Cramer replied:
“They do, but it’s [an] expensive stock and what we’re going to do is we’re not going to pay up for those stocks going forward. That’s the problem.”
Ubiquiti Inc. (NYSE:UI) creates networking technologies for service providers, businesses, and consumers. The company offers products like wireless infrastructure, video surveillance systems, and routing solutions. It also provides platforms for high-speed internet, security, and communication.
8. Stellantis N.V. (NYSE:STLA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 32
Highlighting that they are a value investor, a caller inquired how they should approach Stellantis N.V. (NYSE:STLA) as a long-term investment. Here’s what Cramer had to say in response:
“I think it’s very hard. I think that they’ve changed, the rules have changed so much that for all I know, if things don’t pick up, they’d need capital because it sells at four times earnings. I’m going to ask you not to do that one. I’m going to ask you to be, if you’re going to go there, I think that in the autos, I like GM more, but I don’t really care for the autos. It’s a bad house in a bad neighborhood. I don’t want you in there. I really don’t.”
Stellantis (NYSE:STLA) designs, manufactures, and sells automobiles, light commercial vehicles, and related products and services. The company offers vehicles under brands like Jeep, Chrysler, and Peugeot.
7. The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (NASDAQ:GT)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 37
When a caller asked about The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (NASDAQ:GT) during the episode, here’s what Cramer had to say:
“Value trap, my friend, value trap. So many people have tried to make this thing work in my career so many times and every time that’s happened, it just doesn’t pay off.”
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (NASDAQ:GT) develops and sells a wide range of tires for various vehicles and equipment, under several well-known brands. The company also offers retreading services, manufactures tread rubber, and provides automotive and commercial repair services. In contrast to the above comment, in 2007, Cramer was more bullish on the company as he stated:
“They did the restructuring, and the stock has been knocked down like every industrial company has… I think you’ve got to stick with Goodyear.”
Since then, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (NASDAQ:GT) stock went down more than 65%.
6. The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 43
The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) was mentioned during the episode, and here’s what Mad Money’s host had to say:
“I mean that’s just a really poorly run company. I’m sorry…. I mean Conagra’s a better-run company. It’s got a better yield. I can’t buy a company that’s, that has such, that’s just badly run.”
The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) produces and sells a variety of food and beverage products. The company’s brands include Kraft, Heinz, Oscar Mayer, and Philadelphia. Cramer was not a fan of the company even in January when he commented:
“Well, what’s happening at Kraft Heinz? Exactly what should happen at Kraft Heinz. That’s the worst collection of brands I’ve ever seen. I think those guys should continue to go lower and they are living up [to] their expectations.”
5. Louisiana-Pacific Corporation (NYSE:LPX)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 54
With the tariffs going into effect, a caller inquired if Louisiana-Pacific Corporation (NYSE:LPX) is a buy as it is off of its highs. In response, Cramer said:
“It would’ve been a buy if we banned Canadian lumber and we didn’t. So the answer is no, it is not.”
Louisiana-Pacific (NYSE:LPX) provides building products for new homes, renovations, and outdoor projects. The company focuses on engineered wood products and structural panels for various markets. It is worth noting that on March 14, Cramer remarked:
“I think you should buy it here. Oriented strand board could go higher. President’s probably going to announce tariffs against Canada. For all I know… lumber and LPX is going to go right up to $120.”
4. Teradyne, Inc. (NASDAQ:TER)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 61
A caller asked if Teradyne, Inc. (NASDAQ:TER) is a buy or beware and Cramer responded:
“No, not yet, no. Teradyne not yet because we are not going to buy semiconductor test equipment in this.… right now when the semiconductors are lagging so badly, we can’t go there.”
Teradyne (NASDAQ:TER) designs and sells automated test systems and robotics products. The company provides test solutions for semiconductor devices and provides robotics products like collaborative robotic arms and autonomous mobile robots. Parnassus Investments stated the following regarding Teradyne, Inc. (NASDAQ:TER) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:
“Teradyne, Inc. (NASDAQ:TER), a supplier of automated test equipment for semiconductors, was affected by a broad sell-off in semiconductor-related stocks. We see some “green shoots” in demand and believe Teradyne is well positioned as artificial intelligence moves to smartphones and PCs.”
3. CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 73
When a caller pointed out the 2% gain in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) stock on Thursday, here’s what Cramer had to say:
“Totally terrific stock. I’m going to throw in ICE. That’s exactly where you have to be. That’s fintech without credit risk.”
CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) operates markets for trading futures and options contracts on a variety of products, including interest rates, equity indexes, commodities, and metals. The company also provides clearing services, trade processing, risk mitigation, and market data services.
Parnassus Investments stated the following regarding CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) in its Q4 2024 investor letter:
“CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME), a leading global derivatives marketplace, advanced for the year but trailed the broader market’s gains. Elevated market volatility drove higher trading volumes across asset classes, boosting revenues. However, concerns around competition and decelerating earnings growth weighed on the stock’s valuation. In Financials, we sold CME Group, an operator of futures and derivatives exchanges that faces slowing growth and rising competition. CME Group, a leading operator of futures and derivatives exchanges globally, faces slowing growth and rising competition. We reallocated our investment from CME to Eli Lilly in order to take advantage of the pharmaceutical maker’s greater growth potential.”
2. ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 86
A caller asked what Cramer thought of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) and he remarked:
“I like it here. I would buy it… It’s inexpensive, yields three and a quarter. It’s one of the best run oils. You never really see this thing down like this… When you see the stock down 10, probably going to go down three or four more points, and then I would buy some. It’s exactly where you want to be and it’s a great call.”
ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) produces, transports, and explores for crude oil, bitumen, natural gas, LNG, and natural gas liquids. In June 2024, Cramer was similarly bullish on the company as he said, “If you have to own and oil company, I say you own ConocoPhillips.”
Moreover, on March 26, Morgan Stanley reduced its price target on ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) but kept an Overweight rating on the stock. Despite some caution in the oil markets, the energy sector has had a strong start to 2025. It was up 8% this year and beat the S&P by about 10%. The analyst explained that the firm updated its models based on year-end reserves, the latest commodity prices, and 2025 projections. After these changes, gas exploration and production targets went up by 9%, while oil targets dropped by 11%.
1. Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 88
A caller asked if they should hold Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) and Cramer replied:
“Yeah, I want you to hold it. I mean, it was really a shame what happened to FCX. FCX has been going up because we needed it for data centers and the Chinese were ordering some. Suddenly we’ve decided the Chinese aren’t going to order any and the stock has given up so much of its gain… I think that this is a very good level to buy some. But if you want to really hedge it, why not buy Barrick? Because Barrick, symbol GOLD, has gold and copper. That might be the best way to go.”
Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) focuses on extracting mineral resources in North America, South America, and Indonesia. The company primarily deals with copper, gold, molybdenum, silver, and other metals. Interestingly enough, only last week, Cramer commented:
“Alright, I think copper’s going higher and one of the reasons why I like it, by the way… China’s coming back. They’re the biggest user of copper. But also something that Jensen Huang told me, from Nvidia, he said, listen, copper is just the right thing to have in the data center. I was hoping it’ll be replaced by glass… Two-thirds of the copper is used by China and China’s making a comeback here. At least parts are trying to make it a comeback.”
While we acknowledge the potential of Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (NYSE:FCX) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter time frame. There is an AI stock that went up since the beginning of 2025, while popular AI stocks lost around 25%. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than FCX but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about this cheapest AI stock.
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