RealMoney Radio: Earnings Take Over

For weeks and weeks, the market was trying to figure out what the Fed was going to do, but now the focus is earnings, Jim Cramer said on his "RealMoney" radio show Tuesday.

So far, companies' earnings forecasts have not been pretty, he said, although Cramer said he is an optimist on the long term.

Late Monday, Alcoa (AA Quote) reported an earnings report that seemed good, but then the CEO spoke after the company reported numbers and Alcoa finished down $1.50.

"[Alcoa's CEO] is a stock killer," Cramer said. "He laid out a bearish scenario."

Last week, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD Quote) signaled there would be a price war between it and Intel (INTC Quote), he said.

In addition, EMC (EMC Quote) came out and announced it will not be able to meet earnings estimates because of product transitions.

Last Friday, 3M (MMM Quote) said because of a glut with LCD sales, the company wont be able to make its earnings estimates either.

Lucent (LU Quote), which Cramer said he doesn't like, has been a serial disappointer and guided down for years.

"Business is bad. So where's all the money going?" Cramer asked. Food and drugs will do well now in addition to companies that are counter-cyclical, he said.

Some examples of the these companies that he believes might do well are: Consolidated Edison (ED Quote), Exelon (EXC Quote), Coca-Cola (CCE Quote), Celgene (CELG Quote), Pepsi (PEP Quote) and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK Quote).

The market has been going down, but one stock has been going up, Cramer said. This one stock is Sears, (SHLD Quote) which he owns for his charitable trust, Action Alerts PLUS, he said.

"It's acting like a shield against the downside," Cramer said.

While its competitors Home Depot (HD Quote) and Lowe's (LOW Quote)are acting hideously, Sears is headed up, he said.

Not only are other companies in its industry down, but Sears just had a negative ruling in Canada, in which its bid to takeover Sears Canada was rejected.

But despite these two pieces of negative news, Sears' stock is not going lower, Cramer said. This, he believes, is because the company has been buying back its stock.

Sears is a $24 billion company and the No. 3 retailer in country, behind Wal-Mart (WMT Quote) and Target (TGT Quote).

Sears management owns 50% of the company and is continuing to buy back stock, he said, adding that people should look for companies that have buybacks, because they serve as protection.

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