Cramer's 'Mad Money' Recap: Blown Headlines (Final)

Cramer criticizes the media for jumping to the wrong conclusions about FedEx, Nucor and General Mills.
By Scott Rutt ,

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NEW YORK (

TheStreet

) -- "The future is what matters, not the past," Jim Cramer reminded the viewers of his

"Mad Money"

TV show Thursday, as he spoke out on the media's misleading coverage of earnings news from

FedEx

(FDX) - Get Report

,

General Mills

(GIS) - Get Report

and

Nucor

(NUE) - Get Report

, a stock which he owns for his charitable trust,

Action Alerts PLUS.

Cramer said the headlines in the press branded all three of these releases as "disappointments," sending their stocks sharply lower this morning. But as the details emerged, investors began to get the whole picture, which in turn sent shares higher throughout the day. Cramer said savvy investors could have profited handsomely from the media's early morning misdirection.

In the case of FedEx, the headlines reported a 15-cent-a-share earnings miss for the shipping giant. But Cramer said his headline would have read that FedEx raised its guidance, citing stronger volume growth and lower expenses. It was these buried details that sent shares of FedEx up from $91 to $94 a share after the opening weakness.

General Mills was also hit hard on the open, thanks to the reporting of a 2-cent-a-share earnings miss. But Cramer said anyone who listened to CEO Ken Powell would have heard that volume growth for General Mills was actually up 3% on the quarter, and rising commodity costs are no longer a major worry for the company.

Finally there was Nucor, who pre announced a 10% to 15% loss for the fourth quarter. But here again, Cramer picked up on positive details from CEO Dan DiMicco, including the prediction that 2011 will be better for the steelmaker and that the company was successfully able to raise steel prices over the past 45 days.

Cramer said in their rush to publish, most news organizations miss the important details, especially in the instant analysis. The headlines are about the past, he said, while the commentary looks towards the future.

Eco-Friendly Shoes

In the "Executive Decision" segment, Cramer sat down with Jeffrey Swartz, president and CEO of

Timberland

(TBL)

, a footwear maker that recently delivered a monster 23-cent-a share earnings beat on a 77-cent-a-share basis.

Swartz said that Timberland is now selling its footwear in over 1,000 stores in 85 countries across the globe, and he's especially proud of the company's Earthkeeper line of shoes that offer "BPG..." beauty, performance and green materials.

He said consumers often don't go out of their way to buy green products, and may not even notice that Earthkeepers don't have toxins and use only recycled rubber. But, he added, when consumers realize they can get beauty and performance, all while being eco-friendly, they're happy to make the purchase.

Swartz also noted Europe as a hot spot for Timberland growth. He said that Timberland has been selling men's shoes in the region for 30 years, but is now "killing it" in the women's category with equally beautiful and rugged footwear.

When asked about the company's balance sheet, Swartz said that Timberland always plays conservatively with their finances. When it comes to inventory however, Swartz said there's nothing wrong with being fully stocked with some of the hottest shoes in the market.

Cramer called Timberland, a member of restaurateur Danny Meyer's hospitality index, a terrific story and one that investors need to consider.

XXXX

In a gutsy move, Cramer made what he called a "troubling" addition to his "Wall of Shame" list of the worst CEO's in America. He added William Weldon, CEO of

Johnson & Johnson

(JNJ) - Get Report

, a stock that's just four points off its 52-week high, to the list.

Cramer said while the stock may not reflect it, Weldon has dragged one of the country's most beloved brands through the mud with a parade of high profile product recalls and manufacturing issues.

Cramer said in just the past year, Johnson & Johnson has recalled dozens of products including versions of Tylenol, Benadryl, Motrin, Rolaids, Zyrtec, and Mylanta, many of them childrens' versions. Cramer called the list simply "staggering."

Making matters worse, Cramer said the Federal Food and Drug Administration has cited J&J numerous times in recent months regarding manufacturing issues at its consumer products facilities. There was also an issue with the company's hip implants, which caused the company to discontinue the product ahead of schedule.

"What is Weldon doing over there?" asked Cramer. He said J&J's stock has just been lucky thus far, as the markets are unaware of the magnitude of the problem. Cramer urged the J&J board of directors to let Weldon go before consumers, the market and the regulators have simply had enough of the company's ineffective management.

XXXX

As the WikiLeaks saga continues to dominate the headlines, Cramer said the need for increased cyber security is greater than ever. But with so many security stocks already sharply higher, Cramer said there are only two unconventional ways to play this market trend.

Cramer said chipmaker

Intel

(INTC) - Get Report

, an Action Alerts PLUS name, with its recent acquisition of McAfee, was the first pick. He said that while McAfee's business only accounts for 5% of Intel's sales, the possibility of embedding security software on Intel's chips for a higher selling price, could be huge.

Cramer said auctioneer

eBay

(EBAY) - Get Report

is his second cyber security pick because the company owns Paypal, the undisputed leader in alternative payments on the Web. With consumers looking for more secure ways to shop online, Cramer said Paypal, which only accounts for 13.5% of all online payments, could ramp to 20% by 2015.

Cramer said he's still a fan of the more traditional cyber security stocks like

Fortinet

(FTNT) - Get Report

, a stock that he recommended on its IPO for a 154% gain, but only on a pullback.

Lightning Round

Cramer was bullish on

Baidu.com

(BIDU) - Get Report

,

Agnico-Eagle Mines

(AEM) - Get Report

,

Genesee & Wyoming

(GWR) - Get Report

,

CSX

(CSX) - Get Report

and

Union Pacific

(UNP) - Get Report

.

He was bearish on

Thompson Creek Metal

(TC) - Get Report

.

Closing Comments

In his "No Huddle Offense" segment, Cramer said the bulls should stop cheering for the better-than-expected housing starts reported earlier today.

He said the housing market needs a shortage of homes in order to recover, and with homebuilders saturating the market with new homes, that recovery will never happen.

Cramer said that with home prices stabilizing, the country needs housing starts to be less than 300,000 units. He advised staying away from any stock that's housing-related until that happens.

--Written by Scott Rutt in Washington, D.C.

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.

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.

To watch replays of Cramer's video segments, visit the Mad Money page on CNBC

.

Want more Cramer? Check out Jim's rules and commandments for investing from his latest book by

clicking here

.

For more of Cramer's insights during the Lightning Round, clickhere

.

At the time of publication, Cramer was long Nucor, Intel.

Jim Cramer, host of the CNBC television program "Mad Money," is a Markets Commentator for TheStreet.com, Inc., and CNBC, and a director and co-founder of TheStreet.com. All opinions expressed by Mr. Cramer on "Mad Money" are his own and do not reflect the opinions of TheStreet.com or its affiliates, or CNBC, NBC UNIVERSAL or their parent company or affiliates. Mr. Cramer's opinions are based upon information he considers to be reliable, but neither TheStreet.com, nor CNBC, nor either of their affiliates and/or subsidiaries warrant its completeness or accuracy, and it should not be relied upon as such. Mr. Cramer's statements are based on his opinions at the time statements are made, and are subject to change without notice. No part of Mr. Cramer's compensation from CNBC or TheStreet.com is related to the specific opinions expressed by him on "Mad Money."

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Some of the stocks mentioned by Mr. Cramer on "Mad Money" are held in Mr. Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio. When that is the case, appropriate disclosure is made on the program and in the "Mad Money" recap available on TheStreet.com. The Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio contains all of Mr. Cramer's personal investments in publicly-traded equity securities only, and does not include any mutual fund holdings or other institutionally managed assets, private equity investments, or his holdings in TheStreet.com, Inc. Since March 2005, the Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio has been held by a Trust, the realized profits from which have been pledged to charity. Mr. Cramer retains full investment discretion with respect to all securities contained in the Trust. Mr. Cramer is subject to certain trading restrictions, and must hold all securities in the Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio for at least one month, and is not permitted to buy or sell any security he has spoken about on television or on his radio program for five days following the broadcast.

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