Stocks Recap and Earnings Insights
Jim Cramer’s CNBC Investment Club features a livestream called “Morning Meeting” every weekday at 10:20 a.m. ET. Here’s a summary of key points from Friday’s session.
1. On Friday, most stocks saw some gains, though the Dow dipped slightly. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq both posted increases, primarily driven by semiconductor stocks, which rose for the 18th consecutive day. Intel’s impressive quarterly results and a stock price surge of over 20% fueled this trend. While Cramer expressed optimism about the semiconductor market and highlighted Arm, his newest focus, he wasn’t entirely pleased with Friday’s market performance. He noted that technology seems overly prioritized and expressed a desire for a more widespread market rally. His caution stems from concerns that oil prices haven’t fallen sufficiently for investors to diversify their portfolios.
In a noteworthy moment during the meeting, news emerged that the Justice Department had concluded its criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. This development smooths the path for the confirmation of his potential successor, Kevin Warsh. Earlier in the week, the Senate Banking Committee had convened a hearing regarding Warsh’s nomination from President Donald Trump.
2. Looking ahead to next week’s earnings reports, Cramer mentioned, “We still recommend Corning.” He acknowledged that Corning’s stock has been on a downward trend, yet it has doubled since the year’s beginning. Their fiber optic cables are increasingly valued as alternatives to copper in AI data centers. These fibers offer rapid performance with lower cooling needs, a perfect fit for data centers that demand high power. A key point of interest will be whether Corning decides to end any existing supply contracts with large tech companies. Corning’s growth has been bolstered by a significant commitment from Meta Platforms, which agreed to invest up to $6 billion through 2030 for deploying Corning fiber in its AI data centers.
3. In addition to Corning, nine other companies in the investment club will announce earnings next week, with Microsoft being a notable mention. Cramer stated he has “no intention of selling” Microsoft despite recognizing that stock valuations face challenges. He’s confident that CEO Satya Nadella is aware of the situation and is reacting appropriately. Cramer described Meta as a “scream buy,” highlighting CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s strategic balancing of expenditures and efficiency. Just recently, Meta ended its Amazon Graviton CPU contract and confirmed substantial job reductions. Reports from Meta, Microsoft, Amazon, and Google’s parent company Alphabet are anticipated Wednesday night.
Cramer’s charitable trusts hold positions in stocks like ARM, GLW, MSFT, META, and AMZN. Subscribers to Cramer’s CNBC Investment Club benefit from trade alerts prior to Cramer executing trades in his charitable trust portfolio. If a stock is discussed on CNBC, he waits 72 hours after issuing a trade alert before making a move. It’s important to note that participation in the investment club is governed by specific terms and does not establish any fiduciary obligations.
