On Tuesday, Jim Cramer, host of Mad Money, criticized the market’s reaction, or lack thereof, to the recent dip in long-term interest rates. He pointed out that the 10-year Treasury yield had fallen back to 4.3%, yet barely anyone took notice. “Maybe, just maybe, it’s no big deal,” he said.
“Long-term interest rates plunged today, but did you hear a word about it? Nobody paid any attention to the interest rate decline. I never heard anyone talk about it, especially the very people who kept warning that ever higher rates were signaling that our financial system was in real trouble.”
READ ALSO Jim Cramer Discussed These 12 Stocks Recently and Jim Cramer is Bullish on These 10 Stocks
Cramer said that the same voices who claimed that higher rates were indicative of a collapsing faith in the U.S. economy, a threat to the dollar’s reserve currency status, and harbingers of hyperinflation or stagflation suddenly had nothing to say now that rates were moving in the opposite direction.
He quipped, “Let’s get some ex-Federal Reserve people or even some live ones to tell us that the party’s over.” He called out what he sees as an eagerness among some to spread gloom whenever it suits their narrative. When the rates drop, he noted, the reaction is indifference. He added:
“That’s how this issue’s been covered for ages, but it’s only gotten worse since Trump has sworn in.”
Cramer acknowledged the seriousness of the United States’ $36 trillion national debt and said he does not blame people for being concerned about Treasury yields. However, he insisted that if people are going to sound the alarm when yields rise, they should at least acknowledge or feel some level of reassurance when they decline. Cramer admitted that the political climate in Washington is confusing and, at times, legitimately troubling for markets. He added:
“But like yesterday, when I opined about the chicken littles who tell us that a weak dollar means a weak country and a terrible stock market, I’m going to demand that people stop making Treasury mountains out of Treasury molehills.”
Our Methodology
For this article, we compiled a list of 12 stocks that were discussed by Jim Cramer during the episode of Mad Money aired on April 15. 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).
12 Stocks on Jim Cramer’s Radar Recently
12. Telefónica, S.A. (NYSE:TEF)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 8
Telefónica, S.A. (NYSE:TEF) was mentioned during the episode, and here’s what Mad Money’s host had to say:
“Good company, good company. Used to be bad, but I’m a big, I’m going to give you a twofer. I like that one and Banco Santander by the way. Ana Botín turned out to be the best banker in the world. Well, she still is, and it’s a great stock.”
Telefónica (NYSE:TEF) offers a wide range of telecommunications services and digital solutions, including mobile, internet, fixed-line, and TV services, along with cloud, security, and data-driven technologies for both individual and business customers. The company’s 2024 earnings report showed growth across various areas. As per the report, during the year, revenue was up 1.6% and EBITDA rose 1.2%, and operating cash flow increased 1.6%, all within or above the company’s targets. Additionally, free cash flow was €2.634 billion, a 14.1% year-over-year increase.
11. Deluxe Corporation (NYSE:DLX)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 14
Noting the company’s talk of diversification, a caller inquired about Deluxe Corporation (NYSE:DLX). Cramer replied:
“You said it right. They have been talking diversification for as long as I can remember. They came on the show once. They have an 8% yield, that means that something’s very wrong. When you get a yield that’s well above all the others, it’s not good. I’m going to have to say ix-nay on Deluxe. I wish they had been able to, one of the great growth stocks of the 80s.”
Deluxe (NYSE:DLX) offers technology-driven services that include payment processing, cash management, fraud prevention, and business support tools designed for small and mid-sized companies and financial institutions.