Cramer Remix: Lowe’s is an underdog, but it could be worth your while

FAN Editor

Sometimes, CNBC’s Jim Cramer sees the value in betting on a loser.

That’s why the “Mad Money” host backed the stock of Lowe’s even when the retailer’s shares plummeted on Wednesday in the wake of a weaker-than-expected earnings report.

“I think Lowe’s may not be getting the credit it deserves,” Cramer said. “They have terrific appliance sales, not to mention a good online initiative. And, frankly, they have pride, which will spur them to deliver better numbers going forward.”

Lowe’s may seem like an under-performer compared to its top rival, Home Depot, but given the strength in home improvement retailer, Cramer had faith in its business.

“I do still prefer Home Depot, both the company and the store,” he admitted. “But in terms of their stocks, right now, I’ve got to tell you, after today’s session, the stock of Lowe’s [is] too cheap to ignore.”

When Cramer worked at a hedge fund, his boss would make him wear a “Post-It note of shame” when he missed a good buy or gave up on a great stock.

The “Mad Money” host recalled this while inspecting Wednesday’s roller-coaster of a tape. Three stocks — Boeing, Amazon and Apple — stood out to him as especially Post-It worthy.

“Many of us should be wearing a collective Post-It if you sold [these stocks] during the big panic,” Cramer said. “Remember, if you have conviction, if you believe in a company, you use the declines that we had today to buy the stock, not to sell the stock.”

Salesforce.com’s goal of reaching a revenue run rate of $20 billion by 2022 just got a lot more realistic, Salesforce founder, Chairman and CEO Marc Benioff told CNBC on Wednesday.

In an exclusive interview with Cramer after earnings, Benioff touted his cloud company’s “blowout quarter.”

Salesforce beat analysts’ earnings estimates by 1 cent and posted higher-than-expected revenue, up 24 percent year over year. The company also raised its quarterly and full-year guidance.

“It was our best quarter we’ve had in a long time. It’s an amazing quarter,” the CEO said. “I think that because of this incredible quarter, you’re going to see us really have a huge dream of getting to $20 billion faster than any other software company ever.”

In the same interview, Benioff called on company leaders to put their value in trust as consumer technology grows more powerful and all-encompassing.

“When I’m thinking about my leadership as a CEO, if trust is not my highest value, especially under the guise of all this amazing new technology and all the changes that it’s bringing my customers or my consumers, then how am I leading?” the CEO asked.

Since Under Armour delivered its fourth-quarter earnings report, investors have been wondering whether the athletic brand has recaptured some momentum after months in limbo.

If you ask Kevin Plank, the athletic brand’s founder, chairman and CEO, 2017 was a transformative year that will refocus Under Armour and propel it to new heights.

“We did three major things in 2017,” Plank told Cramer in an exclusive interview with CNBC. “We upgraded our systems; we implemented SAP, so we’re never going to have to do that again. We have the scale of a great company that can give us that pliability as a business to be able to grow forever.”

“We changed our structure, so we went from [having] a head of apparel, a head of footwear, a head of accessories to … [having] distinct categories, like a head of running, a head of training, a head of basketball.”

Paired with Under Armour’s burgeoning international presence, these changes will bring Under Armour closer to its consumers, Plank argued on Wednesday.

As pizza chain Papa John’s undergoes a time of reckoning, choosing a new CEO and severing ties with the National Football League, Cramer wanted to cut through the confusion.

“My view? I’m glad Papa John’s has taken the first step to righting the ship,” he said.

But the “Mad Money” host was results-oriented when it came to the appointment of Steve Ritchie, the company’s former chief operating officer, as CEO.

“I’m going to need more evidence that Ritchie can work some turnaround magic before I give you my blessing on this one. And I think he has to spend to stay even technologically … to catch up with Domino’s,” Cramer said. “I think it’s worth keeping an eye on, but it’s still too soon for me to pound the table on Papa John’s.”

In Cramer’s lightning round, he zipped through his take on some callers’ favorite stocks:

Johnson & Johnson: “I am going to say yes [to building a position in Johnson & Johnson], but you have to do it slowly on the way down and do it in pyramid fashion.”

Micron Technology: “Let’s let it come down a little bit. Look, we know from HP that it is having a good quarter, but there’s no sweat. You can buy it at $45, I think.”

Disclosure: Cramer’s charitable trust owns shares of Apple.

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