We recently published an article titled, Jim Cramer’s Best Performers List: Top 10 Picks. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Kellanova (NYSE:K) stands against other stocks in Jim Cramer’s best performers list.

During Mad Money’s episode on October 1, host Jim Cramer urged investors to remember the market’s strong performance over the past quarter, making note of the rising tensions in the Middle East, which led to a decline in major stock indices on Tuesday.

He pointed out that the landscape has shifted beyond just the major technology companies, and shed light on the top performers of the S&P 500. Cramer observed that the last three months have witnessed what he described as “the revenge of the little guy companies.” He said:

“When you look at the 10 best performers of the third quarter, we discover that this formerly narrow market has totally changed its stripes.”

Cramer emphasized that the current market rally is driven by companies that are often overlooked. He said:

“It is a remarkable list that represents a real broadening out of the winners. Some would say it’s a sign of where we’re headed. I might not go that far, but clearly, we need to start digging a lot deeper to find winners going forward.”

In his recent commentary, Cramer highlighted that the major winners of the third quarter were unexpectedly obscure, primarily comprising a group of ten stocks focused on power generation and interest rate cuts.

He pointed out that these stocks diverged from the well-known Magnificent Seven and traditional FAANG names, with an absence of fast-growing medical or cybersecurity companies, many of which have faced challenges recently.

Cramer suggested that investors look to the bottom of the S&P 500 for insights into market trends. He noted that Super Micro finished last for the quarter, plummeting 49%. It serves as a reminder that backing the wrong AI investment can lead to significant losses. Despite this, Cramer emphasized the need for the market to focus on new stocks for long-term growth rather than relying on past leaders.

Our Methodology

For this article, we compiled a list of 10 stocks that Jim Cramer mentioned during his episode of Mad Money on October 1. We listed the stocks in ascending order of their hedge fund sentiment as of the second quarter, which was taken from Insider Monkey’s database of more than 900 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 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).

Kellanova (NYSE:K)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 45

Kellanova (NYSE:K), formerly known as Kellogg Company, operates in the snack and convenience food sector, delivering a wide range of products across North America, Europe, Latin America, Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Australia, and Africa.

In October 2023, Kellogg Company separated its North American cereal division, forming WK Kellogg, while the remaining brands and regions were rebranded as Kellanova. As per management, the spin-off would lead to a snack-focused business with greater growth potential.

As part of his list of the top performers on the S&P 500 over the past three months, Cramer commented:

“You’re always going to get a takeover in the top 10 but this one really came out of the left field. Kellanova, the snack food company created when the old Kellog broke itself up. It’s being bought by the privately held Mars for a huge $35.9 billion price tag. Now, almost no one saw this one coming because we’re constantly being told that snacks are a dying category thanks to the GLP-1 weight loss drugs. Mars clearly doesn’t think so, and nobody knows junk food better than they do and that’s why the stock of Kellanova was up almost 40%.”

In August, Mars, Incorporated announced plans to acquire Kellanova (NYSE:K) for $83.50 per share in cash, amounting to a total value of $35.9 billion, which includes the assumption of net leverage.

The acquisition represents a significant addition to Mars’s already extensive portfolio, which features well-established billion-dollar brands in snacking and confectionery, including SNICKERS and M&M’S.

The acquisition will also broaden Mars’s health and wellness snacking portfolio, incorporating products like RXBAR and NutriGrain that align with current global trends. It is expected to resonate well with consumers increasingly focused on health-conscious choices.

The completion of the transaction hinges on Kellanova’s (NYSE:K) shareholder approval and other customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals, with expectations set for closure within the first half of 2025.

Overall, K ranks 5th on our list of Jim Cramer’s best performers. While we acknowledge the potential of K 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 timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than K but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

Read Next: $30 Trillion Opportunity: 15 Best Humanoid Robot Stocks to Buy According to Morgan Stanley and Jim Cramer Says NVIDIA ‘Has Become A Wasteland’.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.