'Mad Money' Spotlight: Cramer Buying Sears
Jeanine Poggi
06/24/09 - 12:20 PM EDT
Trust Eddie Lampert.
That was the message Jim Cramer gave during his "Mad Money" segment on Tuesday, regarding
Sears (SHLD), the billionaire investor's pride and joy.
Cramer said Sears, the department store of which Lampert is chairman, is a metaphor for the market, as the stock has been cut in half and doubled.
Shares of the company have been trading between $26.80 and $108.75 during the 52-week period. On Tuesday shares of Sears closed down 2% to $62.68.
"Eddie Lampert did not make any mistakes by not putting huge amounts of money in Sears," Cramer said. "He has a lot of money on the sidelines, he keeps buying back stock."
The company's biggest negative -- not being able to roll over its debt -- no longer exists after it attained a debt agreement.
And there is upside potential, with no CEO and money to invest back into the stores.
Mind you, the stores may look crummy and the company may be poorly run, but this doesn't mean Sears can't make a profit, Cramer said during a RealMoney interview on May 22. Lampert has been able to tightly control inventory and financing.
In an effort to cut costs, the company laid off 300 employees earlier and has shuttered over 50 stores earlier in the year.
Also, for those who think the auto-parts business or housing market are about to turn, Sears could arguably be a wise investment.
Still, Cramer thinks the department store is better suited as a long-term bet. In the first quarter the company
posted a surprise profit, earning $26 million, or 21 cents a share, a drastic flip from a loss of $56 million, or 43 cents a share, last year.
Sales , however, continued on a downward spiral, shrinking 10% to $10.06 billion and Cramer admitted there are no words of solace for such sales numbers. But long-term, he's a believer -- in both Eddie Lampert and Sears.