We recently published an article titled Jim Cramer Discussed 10 Stocks That Can Do Well in December.In this article, we are going to take a look at where EPAM Systems, Inc. (NYSE:EPAM) stands against the other stocks that can do well in December according to Jim Cramer.
Jim Cramer, the host of Mad Money, recently shared a list of ten stocks he believes will perform well in December. He pointed out that stocks that do well in November tend to continue their strong performance into the final month of the year.
Cramer explained that the beginning of a new month brings attention to the previous month’s performance, and with that, a significant influx of money flows into the market. This money, he said, tends to validate the moves of the largest stocks, creating a cycle where money is immediately put to work, often benefiting the Magnificent Seven.
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Cramer also highlighted a common pattern at the end of the year, noting that people tend to make contributions to their retirement accounts when the year is going well. He emphasized that this trend is already visible in the market. When asked why a strong November often translates into a positive December, Cramer pointed to the mechanics of money management. He said that this pattern isn’t new for him, elaborating:
“Before I started my Charitable Trust more than two decades ago, I ran a hedge fund. I was always looking for an edge, and one of the most reliable patterns I found is that, when December rolls around, you mimic the biggest winners of November.”
Cramer recalled how, during his hedge fund days, he would focus on the top-performing stocks of November, buying heavily into those picks and letting them continue to perform through the end of the year. He remarked that this approach has proven to be successful year after year.
In addition to the stocks he recommended, Cramer also noted a category of stocks tied to travel. He mentioned that travel-related industries, including airlines and cruise ships, were particularly strong in November and could continue to show promise in December.
“Now, there are other[s] underneath this list, ones that involve traveling. To me, that means you could buy anything connected to travel, including the airlines… Cruise ships work… But the bottom line: If you want to know what I think could do best in the month of December, or simply what worked best in the month of November, so now you got your marching orders and I say (buy, buy, buy).”
Our Methodology
For this article, we compiled a list of 10 stocks that were discussed by Jim Cramer during a recent episode of Mad Money on December 2. We listed the stocks in ascending order of their hedge fund sentiment as of the third quarter, which was taken from Insider Monkey’s database of 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).
A close-up of a coder at a computer, coding away to bring the latest software service to life.
EPAM Systems, Inc. (NYSE:EPAM)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 39
Discussing EPAM Systems, Inc. (NYSE:EPAM), Cramer remarked:
“Next is EPAM Systems, which is an enterprise software company for platform engineering development. Now the stock’s come roaring back leading, it is part of the return of the enterprise software primacy over hardware. EPAM’s strength is a green light to buy Salesforce and ServiceNow, the two biggest enterprise software plays that I like.”
EPAM (NYSE:EPAM) offers digital platform engineering, software development, and infrastructure management services, along with consulting, design solutions, and expertise in emerging technologies like AI, robotics, and virtual reality. Arkadiy Dobkin, the Chairman, President, and CEO, recently emphasized that investing in both organic growth and acquisitions is essential for building advanced capabilities and expanding service offerings in talent markets.
In the third quarter, the company acquired NEORIS, its largest acquisition to date, which expands its presence in Latin America and parts of Europe, drives growth opportunities with joint clients, and strengthens its regional delivery platform, particularly in Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking markets.
On December 3, EPAM (NYSE:EPAM) also completed the acquisition of First Derivative, a consulting and managed services firm specializing in the capital markets industry. First Derivative has a strong presence in the U.K., Ireland, North America, and the Asia-Pacific region. This acquisition further expands the company’s service capabilities and delivery network, strengthening its position in the global market.
Overall EPAM ranks 8th on our list of the stocks that will do well in December according to Jim Cramer. While we acknowledge the potential of EPAM 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 EPAM but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
