Cramer: Why Is Sears So Hated?

Sure, the "multiple" is too high. Sure, the stores aren't what we want. Sure, the other guys are still taking share.

But do you think that the brands Kenmore, Diehard and Craftsman are worth nothing? Do you think the single biggest delivery service of hard goods in America is worth nothing?

How about this? DO YOU THINK CASH IS WORTH NOTHING?

Now, retail is struggling. I haven't liked retail in 18 months. It just isn't my thing.

But isn't it time to suggest that Sears isn't going out of business? Isn't it time to question, say, Sears vs. Macy's (M Quote)? The latter is missing numbers, has a terrible balance sheet, bought back stock up huge and can't buy any down here. Why is Macy's so much better? You never hear anyone knock Macy's. Never.

Here's the bottom line: The cottage industry of people who come on and say endlessly nasty things about Lampert and Sears should be questioning their thesis -- a nice way of saying they should move on.

You close the bad stores. You eventually get a turn in retail -- does anyone think that won't happen eventually? You get a company that at a certain point is worth more dead -- or to someone else -- than alive.

None of this is solace for those who bought the stock in the hundreds, including Lampert. But the critics never focus on the stock price. They focused on Lampert's strategy. It is time to ask, "Is his strategy creating any less value than the other guy?" How did you do, though, if you bought the much-beloved Target at $60? The universally beloved Abercrombie (ANF Quote) at $82? The fantastic Urban Outfitters (URBN Quote) at $38? A place where I do love to shop -- J. Crew (JCG Quote) -- when it traded at $50? Talbots (TLB Quote) at $17? Ann Taylor (ANN Quote) at $29? JC Penney at $51?

I never heard one bad word about any of those. None.

Am I asking for people to apologize to Lampert?

No.

I am simply saying that if you listen to the critics, you would think that Lampert's stock has been far worse than all of the others. You would think that Sears is on the verge of bankruptcy. You would think that his biggest mistake was not throwing money at the stores. All are wrong!

I don't know about those guys. But I rest my case.

At the time of publication, Cramer had no positions in the stocks mentioned.