In this piece, we will look at the stocks Jim Cramer discussed after the DeepSeek AI selloff.
In his appearance on CNBC’s Squawk on the Street aired before the day of the Federal Reserve’s latest interest rate environment, Jim Cramer shared how Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell would have to fine-tune his remarks in line with President Trump’s sentiments about interest rates. The President made hard-hitting statements earlier this year when he stated that he would demand central banks worldwide reduce interest rates as oil prices were dropping.
Sharing his thoughts on the Fed chair, Cramer stated “Yeah, I think that, uh, Jerome Powell knows how to punt better than anyone I’ve ever seen. I mean, he’s, I just think he’s just not going to take the bait. I think he’s going to say listen we gotta see what happens.” Cramer stated that Powell would keep his options open because of the dynamic nature of today’s markets. After all, it was only last week that Wall Street’s favorite AI GPU stock was the most valuable company in the world. And now, it’s in third place.
Cramer outlined that “I think people are [inaudible] to recognize, that it’s not like we know everything. Things are so fluid.” He also linked the fluidity with investors’ urge to invest with President Trump’s every statement. “That first it’s the Iron Dome mention, I just talked about [the company that makes missiles for the Iron Dome], well [it] has this terrific drone killer system, which they’ve shot down a huge number of these.” Cramer added that while the President might want the “drone killer” as well, it doesn’t mean that the statement would mean to buy stock. He added “A lot of off-the-cuff comments, and you can’t react to all of them. So I think that Jay Powell would be best to say you know what, we have to wait and see.”
The Federal Reserve announced its latest interest rate decision today. As expected, the central bank kept rates unchanged, but the uncertainty in its statement meant that the flagship S&P index bled 0.8% while the broader NASDAQ index lost 1.1%. Investors were particularly spooked by the fact that the Fed’s latest comments didn’t include the usual inflation “has made progress” statement that had previously reassured them that progress on the inflationary front was occurring and could lead to future rate cuts. In other words, the door is now open for the central bank to raise rates further this year if need be, despite an adamant President who believes otherwise.
Cycling back to stocks, Cramer also commented on the AI GPU firm and its latest Blackwell GPUs. Blackwell GPUs are the backbone of future AI data centers, and in his previous shows, Cramer has also commented on their potential to play a role in the humanoid revolution (For more details about humanoids, you can check out $30 Trillion Opportunity: 15 Best Humanoid Robot Stocks to Buy According to Morgan Stanley)
Commenting on Blackwell and DeepSeek’s purported lower training costs, Cramer shared:
“Well, look, there’s no doubt about the cost is great for this. But if you’re gonna go forward and you’re gonna do what Jensen was talking about, which is anything physical, anything physical with Blackwell. It’s going to be better than what we do. I’m just saying that Jensen’s on a plane of his own. And that, if you have low commodity, Jensen’s got the three thousand dollar chip that can handle that. Was I shocked by this? No it was nice that they came up with such a low price.”
Our Methodology
To make our list of the stocks that Jim Cramer talked about, we listed down the stocks he mentioned during CNBC’s Squawk on the Street aired on January 28th.
For these stocks, we also mentioned the number of hedge fund investors. Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds invest in? 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).
10. United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders In Q3 2024: 54
United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) is one of the top-performing airline stocks on Wall Street. Its shares are up by 157% over the past year primarily on the back of the firm benefiting from international travel and a stronger US dollar. However, Cramer also believes that there’s something deeper at foot at United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL). In a recent morning show, he interviewed the firm’s CEO and shared that as opposed to a cyclical grower, the airline appeared to be growing secularly which was remarkable. Yet, despite the fact that United Airlines Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:UAL) Q4 $3.26 in Q4 EPS beat analyst estimates of $3, the shares dropped by 2.31%. Cramer commented on the drop:
“[UAL and DAL] are haves. It’s a very fair statement.”
“Look United I thought had a great quarter, the stock went down [inaudible] they reported the great quarter.”
9. Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE:CCL)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders In Q3 2024: 54
Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE:CCL) is another cruise ship operator that has performed well recently. Its shares are up by 68.6% over the past twelve months as it benefits from metrics such as a record $7 billion in Q3 customer deposits. The high demand indicated by these deposits has also provided Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE:CCL) with strong pricing power. The firm’s fourth-quarter results saw it report 2025 occupancy and price estimates at a record high. Cramer mentioned Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE:CCL) in connection with the broader cruise industry:
“Look I think a lot of people really misjudged that industry. . . . Look, Carnival’s no slouch. Norwegian Cruise, I happen to like . . . . . What people learn Carl, and I’ve spent a lot of time analyzing the industry, is it is such a bargain in an era of inflation. It’s just considered to be the best way to have a vacation. You know I just think that they are terrific. And everyone thinks, recognizes, that there are a lot of people who are snobs. Okay. The snobs don’t recognize that these things are great trips.” “I think it’s incredible and people have just misjudged the earnings power. And the earnings power is amazing.”
8. General Motors Company (NYSE:GM)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders In Q3 2024: 64
General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) is one of the largest car manufacturers in America. Despite rival Ford struggling due to high costs, the firm has managed to hedge the inflationary storm that hit the US car industry in 2024. General Motors Company (NYSE:GM)’s shares are up by 40.7% over the past twelve months as the firm experienced robust demand for its vehicles. However, the stock fell by 8.9% after the firm’s $3 billion net loss included $4 billion in restructuring charges. Investors were also wary about President Trump’s tariff plan and its impact on costs. Here’s what Cramer said:
“[On GM being down 9%] That’s ridiculous. Ridiculous, ridiculous.
“Were you shocked by the charges? I wasn’t shocked by the charges. . .who’s selling that?”
7. Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (NYSE:HPE)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders In Q3 2024: 64
Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (NYSE:HPE) is a data center and IT products company that sells servers, routers, and other associated equipment. Its shares closed 2024 27% higher as the firm’s exposure to the broader non-AI data center industry meant that it experienced limited AI-related share price catalysts. Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (NYSE:HPE)’s shares dropped by 4% after its third-quarter earnings in September as it failed to increase its full-year forecast in a signal of limited AI-related growth. The stock dropped by 11.94% on Monday and Tuesday. Here’s what Cramer said on Tuesday morning:
“By the way, HPE is front and center with this issue about data centers. And everybody thinks that they’re a big loser. I have to think they’re a big winner. I think that that [inaudible] is terrific.”
6. RTX Corporation (NYSE:RTX)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders In Q3 2024: 72
RTX Corporation (NYSE:RTX) is an American defense contractor that makes and sells products such as missiles, aircraft engines, and other products. As the demand for its products has boomed in 2024 due to conflicts in Europe and the Middle East, RTX Corporation (NYSE:RTX)’s shares have gained 38.9% over the past year. Cramer’s comments covered the firm’s latest earnings report which saw it post a 9% revenue growth and beat analyst revenue and EPS estimates. RTX Corporation (NYSE:RTX)’s stock jumped by 2.6% during the day of the earnings, and here’s what Cramer said:
“What a pleasure it is to just have a purely good quarter, David. 11% organic sales growth, 15% commercial aftermarket. 10% commercial operating. And then 10% defense. They’re making money in defense, cybersecurity. And what I think, just to throw in a little, I know you love it when you hear what people are talking about President Trump and companies. President Trump wants a domestic Iron Dome. And, uh, Israel’s smaller than the United States. Just a, kind of, throw it in there. I mean it reminds me of like, do you have to have an intercontinental ballistic missile system like we had in the 70s. That was the talk against the Soviets. Margin expansion everywhere. And David it is true that they do a huge amount of business in the Middle East. Monster. And when Israel has to replenish, you should be thinking of Raytheon. When the European continent wants to protect itself against Russia, you have to be thinking that’s their orders too. And obviously they’re working with DOGE. Everybody’s working with DOGE.”
5. Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE:VRT)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders In Q3 2024: 91
Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE:VRT) was one of the worst-hit stocks during Monday’s DeepSeek selloff. This is because of two factors. First, the firm is significantly exposed to the data center market courtesy of its products such as busbars and racks. Secondly, its shares had soared by 140% in 2024 as investors piled in because of the AI exposure. Yet, Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE:VRT) sank by 30% on Monday as investors questioned whether the billions of dollars earmarked for AI spending were actually necessary. The day after the selloff, Cramer cautioned viewers that the stock could fall further:
“[On no rebound for VRT] No, of course not. The sellers didn’t get finished yesterday. When you see stocks that are down thirty, forty, fifty points, that’s, these are the guys furiously selling and they rarely get done selling on the first day.
“We have to let the sellers get finished. You don’t want to ever come in and pay up after a day like yesterday. You think the sellers went away? Like hey, you know what, I’m fine, I’m completely finished.”
4. Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders In Q3 2024: 107
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) escaped the DeepSeek selloff relatively unscathed as its shares fell by a tepid 6.4% as nearly a trillion dollars of value was wiped from the stock market. The stock held its ground primarily because even though the firm does cater to the AI market with its accelerators, it has been unable to eke out market share from NVIDIA. In fact, as the narrative of potentially lower AI development costs gripped Wall Street, some even wondered whether Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) could be a beneficiary if high-power GPUs weren’t needed to set up AI models. Cramer commented on an analyst note for the stock:
“[On Ben Reitzes at Melius going to $129 from $160] I know, and I love Ben and he’s absolutely right. There’s some really good stuff he’s been writing and a good video he did yesterday but, by the way, it’s possible that AMD’s a winner just because if you don’t need so much power, boom. So I think, he’s late, but I understand.”
3. Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders In Q3 2024: 116
Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) is a SaaS company that provides customer relationship management products and services. 2024 saw the firm reorient its narrative from being the target of AI’s disruption for CRM agents to becoming a firm that provides AI-powered CRM agents. These ‘agents’ enable businesses to reduce costs, and Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)’s primary product in this domain is its Agentforce AI platform. Cramer has praised Agentforce in multiple appearances. This time around, he commented on Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) CEO Marc Benioff’s controversial statements about Microsoft and OpenAI:
“Now Benioff, Benioff’s going to come on to talk about the fight between Microsoft and, David, David, Microsoft and OpenAI.
“The bombs he’s throwing Carl, on X, I mean he’s throwing nuclear war here. I mean we’re gonna have to ask RTX do we really need an Iron Dome for Benioff?”
2. NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders In Q3 2024: 193
Not a day goes by that Jim Cramer doesn’t talk about NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) on his show. With the shares bleeding close to $600 billion in market value during the DeepSeek selloff, it was unsurprising that he started his comments with the firm. NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA)’s stock lost value because investors questioned whether the billions of dollars that were expected to materialize in data center spending would actually be needed if it was cheaper to train AI. Cramer, on the other hand, commented on robots and self-driving:
“[commenting on the rotation to other tech areas] Yes, indeed. Remember the second worst [selloff in market history] was also NVIDIA during the watch party period. Uh, the stock is up. What I would say is there will be heat-seeking missiles coming after that stock. If you really want to buy wait till they send it down two, three bucks. Cause that’s been the usual practice here. Look, it’s no doubt about it that people just say they’re, blast em. I like Cembalest, I go to Cembalest [a] lot, from JPMorgan. And he’s saying . . . but NVIDIA, we point out, is, at, David one of the shoot first ask questions later. The PE based on forward earnings interpretation declined to the very low end of the range. And I was watching last night uh great video after CES, uh, it’s one of these, it’s on YouTube, huge. And I just thought, you know what, we’re now thinking, we went from thinking, it’s great, to thinking there’s really no use to it. But I keep coming back to the next generation’s about robots and it’s about self-driving. It’s not about ChatGPT where it might hallucinate or not. Come on, let’s get serious here.
“[On MS cutting NVDA to $152 and saying NVDA will guide in-line] Yeah, really helpful. I think that’s right cause they’re really having problems with Blackwell. They have problems making Blackwell. I think that’s absolutely right.”
1. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders In Q3 2024: 286
eCommerce and cloud computing giant Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) escaped the DeepSeek AI selloff relatively unscathed. Its shares actually closed the day 1.16% higher as others bled as much as 30% of their value. Part of this is due to the fact that Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is not a beneficiary of data center spending. In fact, if AI training and development costs are lower, then the firm might have to spend less on AI partnerships such as those with Anthropic. Additionally, lower-performance chips becoming adequate for AI means that Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)’s in-house AI processors could also play a greater role in its AI efforts. Cramer mentioned an analyst note that commented on the firm:
“I go to Cembalest lot, from JPMorgan. And he’s saying listen, before you just write this off, remember there are real winners. There’s winners and losers. He’s saying that Amazon’s a winner, they benefit, they can, Amazon, Meta, Apple, and some lesser extent, Google winners.”
AMZN is a stock Jim Cramer talked about a day after DeepSeek wreaked havoc on the stock market. While we acknowledge the potential of AMZN as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some 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 AMZN but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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