Every weekday, the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer releases the Homestretch — an actionable afternoon update, just in time for the last hour of trading on Wall Street. (We’re no longer recording the audio, so we can get this new written feature to members as quickly as possible.) Stocks pop : The S & P 500 on Thursday was trying to hold on to a post-Fed rally — something the broad market index was unable to do in the prior session. After holding interest rates steady Wednesday afternoon, Federal Chairman Jerome Powell took to the podium and eased investors’ concerns. He said the next move probably won’t be a rate hike and that cuts would be considered when central bankers’ were confident that inflation was moving down to their 2% target. That still hasn’t happened even after 11 rate hikes since March 2022. While inflation had been moderating, recent data shows an uptick, which brought wildly optimistic expectations for Fed rate cuts this year back down to Earth. Jim Cramer has repeatedly said if the economy doesn’t need rate cuts, which he thinks it doesn’t, then why cut and risk re-igniting inflation? Club earnings : The flood of quarterly numbers Thursday included reports from Linde and Stanley Black & Decker . Both stocks were being unfairly punished after what we thought were encouraging quarters. Taking advantage of shortsighted sellers, we added to our positions in both companies. Industrial gas and engineering giant Linde reported mixed results and light guidance, which we view as conservative. As for toolmaker Stanley Black & Decker, it beat on earnings and revenue and reaffirmed its outlook. Expectations for a guidance raise sent shares down and gave us the opportunity to buy. The Club also bought more shares of Marshalls and HomeGoods parent TJX Companies , viewing the company as a beneficiary of consumers turning more cautious. While up modestly Thursday, TJX stock has recently trended lower since late March. Winners and losers : A pair of troubled portfolio names saw their shares at the top of the Club’s leaderboard Thursday. Estee Lauder shares added nearly 5% after Wednesday’s 13% earnings-driven plunge. Foot Locker shares, which like Estee Lauder have been under pressure recently, jumped more than 3.5% on Thursday. No news here — but perhaps, some buyers coming in at these still-depressed levels. Another one of our embattled names, Bausch Health , reported quarterly results Thursday. With the continued overhang of legal issues and questions about how to monetize the rest of the company’s hefty Bausch + Lomb stake, the pharmaceutical company was one of the worst performers of the session, down roughly 7%. Up next : Club name Apple reports quarter after the closing bell Thursday. The stock has been under pressure this year on concerns about softer iPhone sales due to weakness in China. Shares of Apple have gotten a recent bounce after a longtime Wall Street skeptic said to buy. Jim has cautioned investors against doing anything with Apple before the quarter and conference call. He also said Thursday his Apple stock strategy remains the same: “own it, don’t trade it.” Also reporting earnings after Thursday’s close is Club name Coterra Energy . Unlike most companies, the oil-and-gas company will hold its analyst conference Friday morning. (See here for a full list of the stocks in Jim Cramer’s Charitable Trust.) As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust’s portfolio. If Jim has talked about a stock on CNBC TV, he waits 72 hours after issuing the trade alert before executing the trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB. NO SPECIFIC OUTCOME OR PROFIT IS GUARANTEED.
Every weekday, the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer releases the Homestretch — an actionable afternoon update, just in time for the last hour of trading on Wall Street. (We’re no longer recording the audio, so we can get this new written feature to members as quickly as possible.)
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