Cramer's 'Mad Money' Recap: Citigroup Should Split

Click here for an archive of Cramer's "Mad Money" recaps.

---

It's time to break things up at Citigroup (C) and bring out some share value, Jim Cramer told viewers of his "Mad Money" TV show Monday.

Though Citigroup has been the one-stop shop for anything financial, Cramer believes that if it would lose CEO Chuck Prince and break itself up into five core businesses -- a U.S. business, an international business, a global markets business, a transaction services business, and an alternative management and investment business -- it would go from trading at $54 to $63.

Cramer said he's run Citigroup's numbers and feels that some of its components deserve a real premium to its comps, such as Citigroup's overseas and global markets businesses. For example, Cramer believes the company's international business is fabulous, and he gave it a 40% premium.

Global markets companies such as Morgan Stanley (MS), Lehman Brothers (LEH) and Goldman Sachs (GS), which Cramer owns for his charitable trust, Action Alerts PLUS, are way too cheap, he said. Each deserves a premium, and Cramer is giving Citigroup a 20% premium, too.

Cramer said he likes this stock so much that he's bought it for his charitable trust, believing it could pay to wait until Citigroup's board comes to its senses and breaks itself up.

However, he reminded viewers that while it's likely that the breakup will happen, it's by no means inevitable. "I'm not making any promises," Cramer said. If market players buy the stock, they should understand they are taking a calculated risk with it.