Cramer's 'Mad Money' Recap: Got Banks, Eh?

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

---

The Canadians are coming!

Investors should take note of TD Bank's (TD Quote) acquisition of Commerce Bancorp(CBH Quote) because more Canadian buys of U.S. banks are on the way, Jim Cramer told viewers of his "Mad Money" TV show Tuesday.

Thanks to a strong Canadian dollar and great stock value, Canadian banks are primed to absorb American regional banks, which lately have been viewed as small institutions with little room for growth.

Unlike Chinese or Arab investors with the cash to buy American companies, Canadians are "warm and lovable," meaning the U.S. government will not intervene in Canadian acquisitions of U.S. companies.

Furthermore, if big Canadian banks want exposure to the American Northeast, they need to acquire multiple banks. "I see more than just Toronto Dominion getting in the game," Cramer said. Cramer compared Northeast regional banks with Frito-Lay products, saying Canadian banks "can't eat just one."

With the Canadian dollar up 12% against the U.S. dollar since last year, Canadian banks can get more for their money by acquiring American banks, Cramer said. Additionally, Canadian banks' stocks are up, even adjusting for the strength of the Canadian dollar. For example, Canadian Imperial is up 31% and Bank of Nova Scotia is up 23%.

Some claim that that TD's payment of 2.8 times book value for Commerce was "silly generous." Cramer told viewers that that view was completely wrong, and he expects very high markups in acquisitions of several more banks, including: National City(NCC Quote), KeyCorp (KEY Quote), New York Community Bancorp (NYB Quote), Comerica (CMA Quote), Hudson City Bank (HCBK Quote) HCBK, M&T (MTB Quote), BB&T (BBT Quote) and Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB Quote).