Dreading the Margin Factor

Can't rave about the action. Still feel good about

the buy in the semis away from

Motorola

(MOT)

, but I sense that there are margin clerks on the prowl in that nasty B2B world, and those stocks seem to know no bottom.

It looks like every marginal dollar from

Commerce One

undefined

and

Ariba

(ARBA)

is going into

Schering-Plough

(SGP)

and

Glaxo

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. That's fine short-term, but it is getting a little hairy for those who are in the so-called strong new stocks like

Broadcom

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and

Checkpoint

(CKP)

. There is a real panic going on in these stocks and there is not enough buying power to keep them up.

We are now waiting for new levels to commit any more capital and are breaking out the cards to keep us from buying anything more. On any lift we will let some of our shakier stocks go that we bought for a trade today, even at a loss. Another chance tomorrow.

James J. Cramer is manager of a hedge fund and co-founder of TheStreet.com. At time of publication, his fund was long Schering-Plough. His fund often buys and sells securities that are the subject of his columns, both before and after the columns are published, and the positions that his fund takes may change at any time. Under no circumstances does the information in this column represent a recommendation to buy or sell stocks. Cramer's writings provide insights into the dynamics of money management and are not a solicitation for transactions. While he cannot provide investment advice or recommendations, he invites you to comment on his column at

jjcletters@thestreet.com.