Cramer's 'Mad Money' Recap: Bright Spots
Cohen explained that over the long-term, treating MS and other conditions with drugs like Ampyra is far more cost-effective that just using physical therapy alone. He said nearly one-half of all stroke victims have reduced mobility of some kind and Ampyra can make a lasting difference in those patients' lives.
Acorda is also working on a new rescue medication for those with epilepsy. The new treatment will be a nasal spray, which is far more advantageous than current treatments, which must be taken rectally. Acorda is hoping for approval of the treatment in 2014.
Cramer continued his recommendation of Acorda.
Charles River's Win-Win
In his second "Executive Decision" segment, Cramer spoke with James Foster, president and CEO of Charles River Laboratories (CRL), a company that allows biotech firms to outsource their basic research functions and make critical go, no-go decisions on the new drugs they're developing.
Foster said the biotech industry is at an inflection point because many drugs are coming off patent and companies are scrambling to replace the lost revenue with new drugs. He said for the next two to three years Charles River should be able to continue taking market share as its labs are designed for efficiency and can provide research functions faster and better than the biotechs can by themselves. Foster said outsourcing to Charles River is a win-win for both firms, as his company is able to provide a very low price point as well as a fast turnaround on the services offered. When asked whether the company will continue to buy back its own stock, Foster said last year the stock was severely undervalued and the company took advantage of the weakness to buy back shares. Currently, he said, his company is working on two accretive acquisitions, and continues to evaluate the most effective use of cash on hand. Cramer said investors should take a second look at this very well-run company.Lightning Round
In the Lightning Round, Cramer was bullish on Verizon (VZ), Rentech Nitrogen (RNF), SPDR Gold Shares (GLD), Visa (V), Millennial Media (MM) and CYS Investments (CYS). Cramer was bearish on Goldcorp (GG), Yandex (YNDX), Nokia (NOK), KiOR (KIOR), BankUnited (BKU) and Ultra Petroleum (UPL).Am I Diversified?
In the "Am I Diversified?" segment, Cramer spoke with callers and responded to tweets sent via Twitter to @JimCramer to see if investors' portfolios have what it takes for today's markets. The first portfolio included: Apple (AAPL), Mercadolibre (MELI), Visa (V), Ford (F) and Lululemon Athletica (LULU). Cramer said this portfolio was properly diversified. The second portfolio's top holdings included: Boardwalk Pipeline (BWP), CapitalOne (COF), John Deere (DE), Facebook (FB) and USG (USG). Cramer also blessed this portfolio as diversified. The third portfolio had: Homestreet Bank (HMST), Goldman Sachs (GS), Ford (F), Cisco (CSCO) and Eaton (ETN) as its top five stocks. Cramer said Homestreet and Goldman were too similar and he'd sell Homestreet in favor of a biotech stock. The fourth portfolio's top stocks were: Walt Disney (DIS), IBM (IBM), McDonald's (MCD), Microsoft (MSFT) and Citigroup (C). Cramer advised selling Microsoft and adding in Pfizer (PFE).No Huddle Offense
In his "No Huddle Offense" segment, Cramer opined on Alcoa's (AA) upbeat outlook for accelerating worldwide economic growth in 2013. How is that possible? he asked. In a word, China, a country that's expected to see a dramatic rise to 11% GDP growth. Alcoa also cited Russia and others as bright spots around the globe. The company sees strength in construction, autos and aerospace as major drivers for the company. Cramer said he's waited for years to be more positive about Alcoa and now might be the inflection point that he's been awaiting. To sign up for Jim Cramer's free Booyah! newsletter with all of his latest articles and videos please click here. To watch replays of Cramer's video segments, visit the Mad Money page on CNBC. -- Written by Scott Rutt in Washington, D.C. To email Scott about this article, click here: Scott Rutt Follow Scott on Twitter @ScottRutt or get updates on Facebook, ScottRuttDCSelect the service that is right for you!
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