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Cramer on the Top 10 Searched Stocks

Stockpickr Staff

The rising dollar, falling oil prices and the Fed's apparent resolve to monitor inflation propelled stocks higher Thursday. We also heard that consumer spending is up, although some argue this is due to rising prices for energy and food.

On the earnings front, Exxon's (XOM Quote) profits rose 17% but it wasn't enough, sending shares south along with several other players in the oil sector. And of course, the Microsoft (MSFT Quote) and Yahoo! (YHOO Quote) tug of war continued, but it seems both players are inching closer to one another.

With all of this news out there, we thought it made sense to take a look at Thursday's Top 10 Most Searched Stocks on TheStreet.com and find out what Jim Cramer's take has recently been on them.

These stocks could be in the news for a number of reasons. Some require immediate attention while others may not. But it never hurts to hear what Cramer (or any of the other professional investors on the site) has to say about them. The key is to gather as much information as you can in order to make the most informed investment decisions you can.

Despite Tyco (TYC Quote) and IndyMac (IMB Quote) hogging headlines with earnings releases, let's take a look at Procter & Gamble (PG Quote) and Heinz (HNZ Quote).

In a May 1 RealMoney blog post, Cramer didn't hold back in his praise for the two companies and their quarterly showings:

"Both of these companies have had to deal with hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars of raw cost increases, and both have not only come through with flying colors but are more profitable than I bet even they thought they could be."

Cramer described Procter & Gamble as "amazing," writing:

"Almost every business was up much more than people thought possible, with divisions like razors and hair care (shampoo) so strong that you would think that suddenly a large part of the populace has decided to start shaving and shampooing for the first time. ...

"Most impressive? The price increases have held everywhere, even though times are tougher. One of the reasons is that it is harder than ever to trade down, because the knockoff companies have the same raw cost inputs and can't make it any cheaper. The other is that PG has created a value-added machine. The public, worldwide, believes that PG's products are better, and there is enough proprietary technology in their products to make me agree. Of course, they have the advertising budget to make you think that, but nobody in this industry believes that anyone makes anything better than PG."

Cramer also heaped praise on the product lines at Heinz:

"Heinz used to be one of the most boring non-innovative companies on the planet. Last year, it introduced 200 new products and is getting double-digit growth worldwide, with more than 20% growth from emerging markets.

"Yet it sells at 17 times earnings. This one is better than Wrigley (WWY Quote) ever was and is cheaper with a fantastic brand name. Its stock has been stagnant even if management has produced huge value."

Cramer believes P&G has a lot of room to run, but he had positive conclusions for both stocks:

"Neither of these stocks is expensive. Both have put through enough price increases that I have to believe if we had a month where ethanol was 'suspended' you would be seeing profit margins go through the roof.

"In the meantime, they are playing as if they are in the penalty box despite the great earnings. ..."

For the more opinions on Thursday's top searched stocks, including Potash (POT Quote) and Visa (V Quote), check out Cramer's Take on Top 10 Most-Searched Stocks From May 1.