On Wednesday, Jim Cramer, the host of Mad Money, shared his thoughts on a few major market developments, including the future of AI infrastructure and Dollar Tree’s decision to sell its Family Dollar division.
“After visiting the GTC event last week, I came away with a feeling of confidence about the growth of AI even though I’m not sure the AI infrastructure buildout can continue at the same rapid pace. Today’s market certainly said that things are slowing and some people think it’s slowing dramatically. I don’t see that.”
READ ALSO: Jim Cramer Discussed These 9 Stocks Recently and Jim Cramer’s Latest Lightning Round: 7 Stocks in Focus.
In addition to his comments on AI, Cramer weighed in on the discount variety store operator’s announcement that it would sell off its Family Dollar division for $1 billion. He could not help but criticize the deal, pointing out that the company had initially acquired Family Dollar for approximately $9 billion in cash and stock a decade ago. He went on to say:
“So now that we know that they never had a plan, there was no integration, they were run as two separate outfits, even as Family Dollar seemed like a doomed chain on its own, descended from mediocrity… to tragedy, what do we have to say here? Could there never be any accountability for this lame brain obliteration of capital?… But hey, you know what? At least we won’t have Family Dollar to kick around anymore.”
Our Methodology
For this article, we compiled a list of 8 stocks that were discussed by Jim Cramer during the episode of Mad Money aired on March 26. 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).
Jim Cramer Commented on These 8 Stocks Recently
8. FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 36
FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS) received a comment from Cramer during Mad Money, and here’s what he had to say:
“You know what? If you like FactSet, I actually want you to suggest to buy Ice, ICE. I think it’s got a lot more upside to it.”
FactSet (NYSE:FDS) provides financial data, analytics, and managed services to support investment research and portfolio management through desktop, mobile, cloud, and API-based platforms. Baron Growth Fund stated the following regarding the company in its Q4 2024 investor letter:
“Shares of FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE:FDS), a leading provider of investment management tools, contributed to performance. The company held an upbeat Investor Day in November and expressed optimism on its fiscal first quarter of 2025 earnings call in December regarding prospects for the second half of fiscal 2025. While we still see some near-term uncertainty, we retain long-term conviction in FactSet due to the large addressable market, consistent execution on both new product development and financial results, and robust free cash flow generation.”
7. Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:APLD)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 42
A caller asked if Applied Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:APLD) was a contender in the long-term frontier here. In response, Cramer said:
“Losing too much money, not a good time. You can’t lose a lot of money in this tape. It just doesn’t work. I’m sorry. I know it’s a nice $6 bet, but I’m not going to do it.”
Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) specializes in designing, developing, and managing digital infrastructure solutions, offering cloud services and high-performance computing for sectors like AI, machine learning, and cryptocurrency mining. In December 2024, Cramer remarked:
“Yes, you know, look, this [is] high-performance computing and you know, when I see high-performance computing, I think about a stock that everybody suddenly hates again and that’s the stock of Nvidia. And I’m not backing away from Nvidia. It’s actually been very good to my Charitable Trust and everybody else in the world.”
Over the past year, Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) stock gained more than 40% while NVDA stock went up more than 23%.
6. On Holding AG (NYSE:ONON)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 49
A caller asked Cramer if On Holding AG (NYSE:ONON) would be a good investment. He replied:
“Okay, we have liked On Holding for some time. We actually started liking it in the $30s… It is a high multiple stock, same multiple in this… [as] Chipotle. I want you to buy the stock, yes, but I want you to let it come in first because the market’s going to be looking a little peaked off of these, frankly, off of the very high tariffs that many people weren’t expecting.”
On Holding (NYSE:ONON) focuses on designing and selling sports products worldwide, offering athletic footwear, apparel, and accessories for running, outdoor activities, training, daily wear, and tennis. On March 11, Cramer commented:
“Crocs? Crocs? We got On Holdings at 45, and you come to me with Crocs? Come on, man! Crocs, no—On, yes!”
5. BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 53
A caller asked if BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) could ever become the GoldenRock and Cramer remarked:
“Well, look, BlackRock is going to be a long-term position of the Charitable Trust. I am betting on Larry Fink and all the good things they can do. They’re switching their model to a much more lucrative model. They have great technology. It is just a true buy and homework stock. I do the homework and I like what I hear.”
BlackRock (NYSE:BLK) is an investment management firm known for providing risk management, advisory services, and a diverse array of investment products, including mutual funds, ETFs, and hedge funds, across various asset classes. Earlier in March, Cramer discussed the company and said:
“Now, how about one that makes no sense to me? On the upside, we own BlackRock for the Charitable Trust… It’s been trying to crack into infrastructure. It hadn’t really done anything. Well, wait a second, CEO Larry Fink had a brilliant idea. Trump wants the Panama Canal back. You know there are ports on either side and they’re owned by a Hong Kong-based company that were for sale… Why not buy them, put them in through that new infrastructure portfolio that Fink bought? Others had the same idea, but Fink got those properties and now he has the premier infrastructure product in the world to go with his recent purchase of Global Infrastructure Partners, could be an amazing return both for BlackRock and its investors. Fink kept Trump up all the whole way. Trump obviously loved the deal.
Doesn’t hurt that he praised the Panama Canal last night. These BlackRock shares, what they do, well, they’re still down 5% for the year and, and way below where the company traded after its last good quarter. It’s ridiculous. I think BlackRock stock is worth much more than it’s selling for. We’re buying it for the trust.”
4. Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (NYSE:HPE)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 66
A caller mentioned that they bought Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (NYSE:HPE) at the end of December for around $21 and sold it last week for $16. They inquired if it was a mistake and Cramer said:
“No, you did not make a mistake. Now, I did spend a lot of time with Antonio Neri when I was out at GTC. It was a nice time… But what concerned me was that last quarter was bad and they’re in the penalty box with me and I would have done the same thing. Once I saw that quarter, I would say, okay, I gotta move on. There’s not much here. Now be aware that everything’s headed down now to where HPE is, but that may afford you an opportunity to swap out of, to put money into a new name that’s better than HPE. And here what I’m thinking about is Dell.”
Hewlett Packard (NYSE:HPE) provides data solutions that help customers manage and utilize information effectively. It offers a range of products, including servers, advanced computing systems, and storage solutions.
3. Stryker Corporation (NYSE:SYK)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 70
Remarking that Stryker Corporation (NYSE:SYK) would do well in “this environment”, Cramer said:
“Stryker is a good company and I think that a medical device company in this environment will do well. Now, there’s some people that are gonna say, listen, they’re going to be tariffs on that company. I’m not sure whether they’ll really matter. I think Stryker works in an environment where we’re putting 25% tariffs on all foreign cars. As I’ve been saying to you, Germany, Japan and Korea have to pay. I’ve been saying it and saying and saying it and it happened tonight. And people say, why didn’t we know? I don’t know what else I could do.”
Stryker (NYSE:SYK) is a company specializing in medical technology, providing a variety of products such as joint replacement implants, spinal systems, surgical instruments, patient safety solutions, and neurosurgical equipment, along with other medical devices. In January, Cramer enthusiastically said:
“And David, by the way, Stryker, wow. This is gonna be Stryker’s, able to get beyond what it’s doing with just the head and shoulders, knees and toes! Knees and toes!… That’s fabulous for Stryker!… I wanna buy the stocks of every single of these acquirers.”
2. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 83
Cramer made a comment on Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG) in light of tariffs as he said:
“Chipotle? Alright, so Chipotle, I don’t want to be a weasel here, but it sells at 38 times earnings and that kind of stock is going to take a little bit of heat just because the market’s going to be down off the tariff news. But it is the kind of stock you would buy after the tariff news is digested and it’s, but it is gonna feel like it’s, you’re digesting something that’s real bad tasting.”
Chipotle (NYSE:CMG) operates a popular chain of restaurants that specializes in serving a variety of Mexican-inspired dishes. ClearBridge Investments stated the following regarding the company in its Q4 2024 investor letter:
“We also initiated a position in fast casual restaurant chain Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG). The recent pullback in shares related to a moderation in industry-wide restaurant sales and CEO Brian Niccol’s August departure created an attractive entry point into a company with industry-leading unit economics in a still underpenetrated market. Chipotle plans to double its store footprint over time while executing initiatives to increase volume growth through technology enhancements, reduced mobile order friction and higher production during peak hours. Better throughput, technological integration and improved mix should help to drive continued margin expansion. Chipotle further diversifies the portfolio, adding to consumer discretionary where we have historically had less exposure.”
1. NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 84
NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) was mentioned during the episode of Mad Money and here’s what Cramer had to say:
“Oh, I like NextEra. I think it’s a good move, particularly in this environment…. That is exactly the kind of stuff that I am looking for.”
NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) produces and distributes electricity through a combination of renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, and nuclear. Additionally, the company is involved in the development and management of long-term clean energy projects, including battery storage and electric transmission infrastructure. Previously, in January, Cramer made a bullish remark on the company as he said:
“I like them. I think it’s good. I think it’s a growth utility. I wish it had a little bit better yield, but that’s because the stock has moved so much. I think you’ve got a good one.”
While we acknowledge the potential of NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) 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. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than NEE but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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