Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer 10/15/26

Kimberly-Clark

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  Kimberly-Clark's Kenvue acquisition is a great deal, paid mostly in its own stock, and nearing close.

  Kimberly-Clark is getting a great price for Kenvue because it is paying mostly with its own stock. Johnson & Johnson spun off Kenvue, which lacked a clear growth or e-commerce strategy, and activist shareholders attacked it. Kimberly-Clark is a natural buyer. Regulators in China and Brazil have now approved, so the deal is a couple of weeks from closing, and the combined company gets well-known consumer brands.

  “and that's when Kimberly Clark stepped in, getting a great price, especially since they're primarily paying for [Kenvue] with their own stock.”at 35:57

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  Kimberly-Clark is a buy as the Kenvue deal nears closing and the turnaround takes hold.

  Cramer says Kimberly-Clark has turned around under CEO Mike Shue, who was hired seven years ago to fix a weak balance sheet and an unwieldy international business. The 2025 purchase of Kenvue, J&J's consumer health unit, came at a discount after RFK Jr.'s Tylenol-autism claims hit the stock. It is mostly paid in KMB stock. Regulators across the globe held the deal for almost a year, but China approved it the day before and Brazil gave unconditional approval that evening, which was the last major hurdle. Cramer sees closing in two to three weeks. He says the stock is rolling over into a rebound, and he expects analysts to start pounding the table on it. He says he bought it to replace a diversified-away position after losing on concentrated tech.

  “The two companies agreed to the merger almost a year ago, but it's been held by regulators across the globe... I think this deal is actually now within, I got line of sight for me a couple weeks of closing.”at 36:02

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  Kimberly-Clark is undervalued at about $104 with a 5% yield, and analyst upgrades are coming soon.

  The stock fell to the mid-nineties and closed at $104, versus $123 a year ago, and it yields about 5%. Guidance was reaffirmed and the last three quarters were only okay, so expectations are low. Only three large firms rate it a buy and seven hold, so analysts have room to upgrade. Cramer expects the Kenvue deal and its brands to draw a champion within a couple of weeks, and says the investing club holds it.

  “Close today at 104. It traded a 123 a year ago, so I don't think you've missed much. Still yields about five.”at 37:22

The Home Depot

Across the shows: 1 speaker in other episodes, past 30 days

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  Keep holding Home Depot: the stock has been flat but should improve as rates fall.

  Cramer acknowledges that Home Depot has been a source of pain and has done nothing lately, though it rose 4.5% on the day. He links its prospects to rates. With the yield near 3%, lower rates would help housing-linked retail, and he points to the day's rally as evidence of how rate moves drive the stock. He expects much better things ahead, but the case rests on the rate outlook rather than on company numbers.

  “Alright. I want you to keep holding it... It's been doing nothing of late, but it did have a good day today. Yields 3%. We get rates down. ... I think much better things are ahead for Home Depot.”at 33:18

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  Home Depot is the most rate-levered stock he has found; buy now before the Fed shifts.

  If the Fed changes its view and cuts rates, Home Depot should gain the most of any stock Cramer has found. The stock pays a yield while investors wait. The company is well run. Cramer says investors will not make money until rates change, but when they do, the gain could equal a whole year's returns within days.

  “if you really think that the Fed is gonna change its view, you wanna buy Home Depot. And that's what I said at the meeting today. Said Home Depot is the single most levered to rates stock I have ever found.”at 44:43

SK Hynix

Across the shows: 2 speakers in other episodes, 2 bullish and 0 bearish calls, past 30 days

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBearish

  SK Hynix and Samsung are crowded Korean memory stocks being mowed down as leveraged retail holders sell.

  SK Hynix rallied almost 1,000% over two years to June, and Samsung did too. Cramer says Korean individual investors dominate trading and own mostly these two stocks, often with borrowed money. The stock fell from $195 to $146 in ten days. The KOSPI sold off hard, with SK Hynix down 11% and Samsung down over 9% on a day when Taiwan Semi reported a strong quarter. Cramer argues that this crowded unwinding is spilling over into US tech hardware, so he sees further pressure on memory names.

  “In the last few weeks, these stocks have been mowed down. I mean, they're mowing down the shareholders, especially the dimwits [who] bought them with borrowed money.”at 4:02

CoreWeave

Across the shows: 19 speakers in other episodes, 4 bullish and 19 bearish calls, past 30 days

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBearish

  CoreWeave is worrisome: heavy debt, and its bonds yield 15% even though its private loans trade higher.

  Cramer describes CoreWeave as a heavily indebted data center builder. Short sellers argue it could struggle to keep building out because its public debt yields 15%. Cramer calls the concern generally worrisome, even though its private loans trade much higher, and notes that much of its debt is backed by Nvidia semiconductors. The stock peaked in May and has since fallen sharply. He also notes that a rebound followed Nvidia's Jensen Huang saying the company did not need help, so the stock is volatile around its financing story.

  “It's generally worrisome even though its private lent loans trade much higher.”at 4:56

Capital One Financial

Across the shows: 1 speaker in other episodes, 1 bullish and 0 bearish calls, past 30 days

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  Capital One is about to take off after a flat stretch since the Discover merger, though he is only hanging on.

  Cramer argues Capital One's stock has done little since the Discover merger, but he thinks it is about to take off, citing CEO Richard Fairbank's reputation as a skilled operator. He hedges that investors prefer Mastercard and Visa because they carry no credit exposure and grow faster. He says he is still hanging with Capital One, but he is not confident. The support is thin, and the view is mainly a bet on a recovery rather than on the numbers.

  “Capital One's Richard Fairbank. He's money, and the stock has not done much lately at all after they merged with Discover. I think it's about to take off.”at 12:00

The Charles Schwab

Across the shows: 2 speakers in other episodes, 1 bullish and 1 bearish calls, past 30 days

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  Schwab is a buy; AI displacement fears are overblown and the stock is cheap at under 15x earnings.

  Cramer argues the post-earnings selloff and the earlier AI-displacement selloff are overdone. Clients shifting cash to AI agents is unlikely, since he doesn't see people letting agents move their money, and the CFO said the deposit outflows were not cash sorting. Schwab's core net new assets rose 38%, record new assets came in, and client assets rose 15%. Margin loans jumped 93%, though Cramer dislikes that as a risk. Schwab bought back nearly $4 billion of stock year to date and holds about $190 billion of securities yielding under 2% that will reprice higher as they roll off. The net interest margin of 3.04% missed the 3.11% expected, and revenue guidance sat at the low end, but earnings guidance was not cut. At $94 the stock trades under 15x this year's estimates and just under 12x next year's, which Cramer calls cheap for the growth rate.

  “Here's the bottom line. Every time Wall Street counts Charles Schwab out, it's proven to be a great buying opportunity. I think it was wrong to sell the stock on AI displacement fears in the spring, and it's wrong to sell it on MetaMuse worries today.”at 20:59

Kontoor Brands

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  Kontoor is a smart buy: a $400 million buyback is about 10% of market cap, and the stock trades near 14x earnings.

  Jefferies upgraded Kontoor from hold to buy, raising its target from $82 to $89, as part of a bullish call on a denim category that has suddenly accelerated. Jefferies sees casualization and 90s nostalgia replacing athleisure, and it views Wrangler as a key business. Kontoor plans a $400 million accelerated buyback, equal to about 10% of market cap. The stock trades just under 14x earnings. Cramer adds that Helly Hansen is a fast-growing brand that will become a bigger part of the company once the Lee brand sale closes. He is wary of apparel at this point in the cycle, but he argues the depressed valuation and buyback make Kontoor an exception.

  “Jefferies likes the Wrangler business here, and they love that Contour plans to do a $400,000,000 accelerated buyback. That's equal about 10% of the market cap. With the stock at just under 14 times earnings, that's a smart investment.”at 29:34

V.F.

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  VF Corp is a buy: Vans is stabilizing, the North Face and Timberland are growing, and the stock trades at 16x.

  Vans fell sharply for several years (constant-currency sales down 8% in 2023, 25% in 2024, 15% in 2025 and 11% in the year to March), so fan sales were nearly halved from peak. Cramer says that weakness is now stabilizing. Piper Sandler's teen survey put Vans at the number seven footwear brand for male teens and rising among upper-income teens, while PacSun's ranking also improved. Chamberlain entered the top 10 and the North Face returned to the top 10 athletic clothing brands. Web and foot traffic for all three top brands was strong in September, and Vans wholesale is improving on new products. The North Face and Timberland have grown steadily. With the stock at 16x this year's earnings, below the S&P 500, Cramer argues the turnaround is priced in cheaply.

  “So here's the bottom line. These upgrades have changed my mind about VF Corp and Contour. Down here, I think they're both buys.”at 30:09

Reddit

Across the shows: 1 speaker in other episodes, 1 bullish and 0 bearish calls, past 30 days

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  Reddit is inexpensive after a bad year and is at a great price to buy.

  Cramer says the stock is inexpensive and has been hit hard this year, so the price is attractive. He agrees with the caller that the market punished Reddit for losing unprofitable Google search traffic. He does not address the monetization of its user base or the traffic loss, so the case rests mainly on the price drop.

  “I wanna buy Reddit. I think the stock is inexpensive. The stock's down really badly this year, and I think it's at a great price.”at 38:55

Rocket Lab

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  Rocket Lab's sell-off after the Neutron delay is a buying opportunity, since a launch failure would hurt more.

  Rocket Lab fell over the last two weeks after announcing that Neutron is delayed to 2027. Cramer thinks a failure to launch would have hurt the company more than a delay does, so the sell-off gives investors a chance to buy. He does not discuss the Electron record, the acquisition or the $2.3 billion backlog the caller raised.

  “I thought that launch would... The failure to launch would have hurt it more, and I think you're giving a great opportunity to.”at 40:06

Enterprise Products Partners L.P.

Across the shows: 1 speaker in other episodes, 1 bullish and 0 bearish calls, past 30 days

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  Enterprise Products is not hurt by oil prices; its NGL business is being sold off unfairly.

  Enterprise Products handles natural gas liquids and fractionation, which Cramer calls the other part of the energy equation rather than oil. Oil prices falling after a war in Iran should not hurt it much. The stock is getting hit as if it will be hurt, so Cramer says to hold it and take advantage of the sell-off.

  “They do natural gas liquids. They do fractionate. They are the other part of the equation, not oil. ... it's getting hit as if it is going to get hurt. It's not.”at 40:39

SiTime

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBearish

  SiTime is well run but too expensive; he cannot support a high multiple while rates rise.

  Cramer calls the company well run and says the caller's acquisition and new product line are in demand. He still will not recommend it because the stock is expensive, and he won't back high-multiple tech stocks in a rising-rate environment. The case rests on valuation against rates, not on the company's business.

  “It's expensive, and I'm not recommending any expensive stocks in tech or out of tech. ... I just can't support a high multiple stock in a rising rate environment.”at 41:06

Corning

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  Copper will be replaced by fiber in data centers, an evolutionary change that Corning will benefit from.

  Cramer says the market is in the middle of a scare about data center demand, but he is sure copper will be replaced by fiber. He calls that an evolutionary change that will benefit the caller's company, which he names as best in the optical group. He treats the fiber shift as certain and says the data center scare is not the main issue.

  “right now we're in the midst of a scare about what's gonna happen to data center, but there is no doubt about it that copper is gonna be replaced by fiber. That's just an evolutionary change that your company is gonna benefit from.”at 41:44

Valero Energy

Across the shows: 3 speakers in other episodes, 1 bullish and 1 bearish calls, past 30 days

• Jim Cramer · CNBCUncertain

  Valero is a high-risk trade that pays only if the war keeps crack spreads wide; otherwise it goes flat.

  Cramer owns Valero as a trade. The refiner's upside depends on the large crack spread the Iran war is creating. If that spread persists, the stock could make money. If it doesn't, Cramer expects Valero to return to its usual state of doing very little. He calls it a double-or-nothing trade.

  “I have a Valero just as a trade. ... This thing is a double or nothing trade from here. If you continue to get this big crack spread because the war you're going to make money. And if you don't, then Valero is going to go back to what it always used to be”at 42:23

CAVA Group

Across the shows: 1 speaker in other episodes, 1 bullish and 0 bearish calls, past 30 days

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  Cava is really good; it is volatile as a restaurant stock but should do fine long term.

  Cramer says Cava is really good, but restaurants are inherently more speculative than a recurring-revenue business like Hinge, so the stock goes up and down. He says that over the long term Cava should do fine. He says he is not worried about the balance sheet.

  “Think [Cava] is really good, but remember, it is restaurants. And restaurants are inherently more speculative than something like Hinge, which has this great recurring revenue... That said, I think Cava for the long term is gonna do fine.”at 46:02

Microsoft

Across the shows: 11 speakers in other episodes, 9 bullish and 2 bearish calls, past 30 days

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  Microsoft is well run and should post big Azure numbers at earnings; let the stock run.

  Cramer says Microsoft is incredibly well run and he expects very big numbers, particularly from Azure, in the coming earnings report. He says the caller should not sell into earnings and should let the position run, even after the stock rallied more than 50% from its June lows.

  “[Microsoft's] incredibly well run, and I expect very big numbers, particularly from Azure. Here's how you handle for earnings. Just let it run.”at 46:02

Hinge Health

• Jim Cramer · CNBCBullish

  Hinge Health is not speculative; its recurring-revenue model should drive the stock much higher.

  Cramer says Hinge is not speculative because it has a fantastic business model with great recurring revenue, unlike restaurant companies. He expects the stock to head much higher and says he is not worried about its balance sheet. The case rests on the recurring-revenue model.

  “[Hinge] stock is headed much, much higher. I really like them.”at 46:02

AI infrastructure & data centers

• Jim Cramer · CNBC

  The AI data center story has cracks, as building out requires costly cash that is harder to raise with rates rising.

  Cramer says the data center build-out needs huge amounts of cash, and that cash is harder to come by as interest rates rise. He notes that the two biggest AI labs, OpenAI and Anthropic, are still private, and that Anthropic's sales growth slowed from 147% sequentially in Q2 to 45% in Q3. Core Weave's debt stress and the sell-off in Korean memory names add to the sense that the story is developing cracks. He still says the hardware names need the story to remain intact.

  “The data center build out needs a huge amount of cash, but with interest rates rising, cash has been harder to come by stands to reason.”at 4:14

Market sentiment, positioning & volatility

• Jim Cramer · CNBC

  Concentrated Korean retail positioning in memory stocks is spilling over and driving US semiconductor selloffs.

  Cramer argues that Korean retail traders who hold little beyond SK Hynix and Samsung drive overnight trading, and that the selling has spread into the US. Cramer says he can gauge how hard US tech will fall by watching how these two Korean stocks trade overnight, and that the Korean and Nasdaq markets no longer decouple. He blames the concentration and lack of diversification for a large selloff in semiconductors.

  “The concentration, the lack of diversification has caused a giant sell off in the semis.”at 5:28

US stock market outlook

• Jim Cramer · CNBC

  Money is rotating from AI data center stocks into staples, retail, healthcare and other non-tech sectors.

  Cramer says the AI data center trade cracked over several weeks and that money rushed into consumer packaged goods, retailers, restaurants and healthcare. The Dow rose 556 points, the S&P gained 1.33%, and the Nasdaq gained about 0.8%, with software, transports and oil also rising. He argues that concentration in AI data center stocks is dangerous, and that the non-tech rotation is what protected portfolios on this day.

  “Think of it like a designated driver for your portfolio. ... these non tech stocks will get you home safely like they did today.”at 9:05