Jim Cramer's Stop Trading! Buy Prudential

Buy Prudential (PRU) and sell Ameritrade (AMTD), Jim Cramer said Wednesday on CNBC's "Stop Trading!" segment.

Cramer said TD Ameritrade chief Joe Moglia is doing "a great job," but he said investors should sell the stock up 30% in a short span despite no change in fundamentals. He said the same of rival E*Trade (ETFC), stressing that it's time to take some gains and consider buying the stocks back later when they fall.

Cramer said Prudential is a buy because Wednesday's decision to wind down Prudential Equity Group shows that the company is dedicated to taking action to protect shareholders, even if it means making "brutal" moves like the research shutdown.

Cramer said SPX (SPW) is a buy because it's "hitting on all cylinders" and CEO Chris Kearney has been "so bankable for so many years." Cramer said SPX is similar in that regard to Danaher (DHR); he said the companies are "committed to you as a shareholder."

Cramer said Wednesday's triple-digit drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average provides an opportunity to buy defensive stocks such as Verizon (VZ), Johnson Controls (JCI) and Cigna (CI).

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