We recently compiled a list of the 10 Stocks on Jim Cramer’s Radar. In this article, we are going to take a look at where The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) stands against the other stocks on Jim Cramer’s radar.
Jim Cramer, the host of Mad Money, recently shared his outlook for Wall Street, focusing on earnings reports. On Friday, he highlighted how the S&P 500 surged toward 6,000 in almost a straight line, a remarkable rally driven by overwhelming buying and a lack of selling. Cramer noted the market’s performance, pointing out that the Dow rose by 260 points, the S&P gained 0.38%, and the Nasdaq advanced 0.09%, with all major indices closing at new record highs.
He described Friday as another impressive session, adding that it marked a historic moment. Cramer reiterated his point, stating:
“This is ladies and gentlemen, a historic move we are witnessing, fueled by an election where voters chose a candidate who is pro-growth, pro-higher stock prices, pro-lower interest rates, and pro-lower taxes… Trump is the most explicitly pro-stock market president in history.”
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Cramer went on to say that now that Trump has won, the benefits are clear across many sectors. He cited tech, oil, pharmaceuticals, consumer goods, and financials as prime examples of sectors seeing strong performance. He emphasized that these gains were driven by money managers who feared missing out on the market’s upward trajectory and were unwilling to sell, knowing they might not have enough stocks in their portfolios. Cramer also predicted that we would soon witness a surge in mergers and acquisitions.
“At the same time, we’re about to see a wave of takeovers as the antitrust regulators will stop trying to block every deal under the sun because a new broom is gonna sweep clean.”
Cramer stressed the importance of looking at the market on a sector-by-sector basis. He noted that the tech sector had taken a breather on Friday. In the coming days, he suggested that retailers might surge, followed by financials and then industrials. He described this cycle of sector rotations as part of an “incredibly bullish, virtuous circle” of market gains. While Cramer acknowledged that stocks had performed well under President Biden, he pointed out that Biden didn’t seem to place much importance on the stock market during his tenure.
“For him, it was an abstraction,” Cramer remarked, adding that this stance was changing with the current administration. In conclusion, Cramer made it clear that stocks were about to have a true champion in the White House once again.
“Stocks are about to have a champion in the White House again, even if you might think they aren’t worthy of a presidential supporter. I say get used to it, even though the buying’s started already, because we got a lot more room to run.”
Our Methodology
For this article, we compiled a list of 10 stocks that were discussed by Jim Cramer during the episode of Mad Money on November 8 and listed the stocks in the order that Cramer mentioned them.
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).
The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD)
Cramer commented that The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) stock is one to own when the Fed cuts rates.
“And this is the quintessential stock to own when Feds cut rates. Always has been, always will be. I remember since 1988, I’ve been playing rate cuts with this one. I’m looking for the despot to raise numbers, given that we’re headed for a lower and straight environment. They could forecast the first real growth in years… The stock, which looks like it’s up, could head up much higher.”
Home Depot (NYSE:HD) is one of the largest and most recognized retailers in the home improvement sector. On November 12, the company reported its financial results for the third quarter, surpassing analyst expectations on both revenue and earnings. It achieved net sales of $40.2 billion, marking a 6.6% increase year-over-year.
While adjusted EPS was $3.78, reflecting a 4.3% decline compared to the same period last year, they still outpaced analysts’ estimates. The company’s performance was shaped by a combination of factors. On the revenue side, the normalization of weather patterns contributed to stronger sales in seasonal products and outdoor projects.
The company also saw a surge in sales due to hurricane-related demand, which provided a temporary boost. At the same time, the company’s ability to navigate supply chain complexities and improve operational efficiency was a key factor in driving growth.
Home Depot (NYSE:HD) updated its fiscal 2024 outlook, which now accounts for 53 weeks of operations. The company expects total sales to rise by around 4%, while comparable sales for the 52-week period are projected to decrease by about 2.5% compared to fiscal 2023. Additionally, the company plans to open approximately 12 new stores and anticipates a gross margin of roughly 33.5%.
Overall HD ranks 2nd on our list of the stocks on Jim Cramer’s radar. While we acknowledge the potential of HD 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 HD 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.