Cramer's 'Mad Money' Recap: Giving Credit Where It's Due

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NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Let's give credit where credit is due, Jim Cramer said on "Mad Money" Wednesday. While some investors credit the market's rally to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke or a global economy that's on the mend, the real heroes of this market are great CEOs.

This quarter more than any other, investors have been able to see how great CEOs respond to changing market conditions and lead their companies to greatness, said Cramer.

Case in point: Whole Foods Markets (WFM). Cramer said this stock was largely felt to have passed its prime last year and lost its way with customers. But did the company listen? Not a chance.

Whole Foods has been hard at work adjusting to changes and accelerating its store growth, allowing it to post unbelievable numbers today. He said Whole Foods could open four times as many stores as it has now and still not have enough to serve its rabid fan base. Whole Food is a buy, Cramer concluded, even after its 10% pop in today's trading.

Then there's Walt Disney (DIS), another stock that was written off and left for dead last year. Cramer said this company remains intensively competitive and was able to surprise shareholders with remarkable earnings that included growth in multiple categories.

Another winner, EOG Resources (EOG), appeared on "Mad Money" just last night, said Cramer. There, too, a visionary CEO is leading his company into a far more profitable future than anyone thought possible.

Cramer said that all of these companies are buy, buy, buys.

Market Confidence

This is what a rally looks like when Washington gets itself off the front page, Cramer told viewers as he opined on the continuing budgetary issues facing our nation.

Cramer said many of our country's issues remain but, now that we're not heading towards another immediate crisis, confidence has once again returned to the markets and rising stock prices have been the result. He said investors need to remember what the markets looked like just a few months ago, when the markets fell on every press conference given by President Obama or anyone in Congress.

In the end, Obama got what he wanted, said Cramer: increased tax receipts, and it's those receipts that are helping the U.S. Treasury slog forward until at least the end of this year. Until then, be thankful for the market rally.

Executive Decision: Dan Fulton

In the "Executive Decision" segment, Cramer sat down with Dan Fulton, president and CEO of Weyerhaeuser (WY), a stock Cramer owns for his charitable trust, Action Alerts PLUS. Shares of Weyerhaeuser are up 107% since Cramer first got behind the company in July 2010.

Fulton said Weyerhaeuser will be a major benefactor from the rebound in the U.S. housing market because the company not only owns millions of acres of timberlands but also produces lumber and building products and is a home builder. He said the pickup in home construction in California is especially welcome news for the company.

In addition to new home construction, Fulton also cited the repair and remodelling market as strong for Weyerhaeuser, as is construction overseas including Japan, China and Korea -- all big markets for the company.

When asked about the price of the materials it sells, Fulton explained the pulp prices are firming after a period of weakness, but pricing for lumber remains high as a lot of capacity left the market during the downturn. He said some of that supply is starting to come back on line but the supply of lumber remains tight in some markets.

Cramer said he likes what Weyerhaeuser has to say and predicts a multi-year move higher for the stock.

Lightning Round

In the Lightning Round, Cramer was bullish on Halcon Resources (HK), Hertz Global Holdings (HTZ), Avis Budget Group (CAR), Whiting Petroleum (WLL), Plains All American Pipeline (PAA), Raytheon (RTN), Lockheed Martin (LMT), Williams Companies (WMB), Express (EXPR) and US Airways Group (LCC).

Cramer was bearish on Dole Food (DOLE).

Executive Decision: Craig Bernfield

In his second "Executive Decision" segment, Cramer sat down with Craig Bernfield, chairman and CEO of Aviv REIT (AVIV), a newly minted REIT that came public back in March. Aviv REIT specializes in owning nursing homes and acute-care facilities for the elderly.

Bernfield noted that his company's initial dividend has been set at $1.44 annually, which translated to a 7.5% yield at the IPO price and translates into a 5% yield today. He said the nursing home industry remains very fragmented, leaving lots of opportunities for growth in the future.

When asked about some of the headlines warning of only an 80% occupancy rate, Bernfield explained that 100% of Aviv's properties have tenants, but those tenants are running at 80% occupancy, a statistic that doesn't affect the company directly. He said, on average, Aviv tenants are earning 1.6 times their rent, making them stable investments.

Cramer said Aviv is shaping up to be another great dividend-paying stock and investors should look into the company.

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: Visa (V), Cummins (CMI), Kinder Morgan Energy Partners (KMP), Altria (MO) and FedEx (FDX).

Cramer said this portfolio was perfectly diversified.

The second portfolio's top holdings included: Pfizer (PFE), General Mills (GIS), Hershey (HSY), Heinz (HNZ) and Ford (F).

Cramer said this portfolio was not diversified with Hershey and General Mills and needed to add an industrial and a retailer to round out its exposure.

The third portfolio had: McCormick (MKC), Pall (PLL), Procter & Gamble (PG), Chevron (CVX) and IBM (IBM) as its top five stocks.

Cramer advised selling McCormick and adding a health care stock in order to properly diversify this portfolio.

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, ScottRuttDC

At the time of publication, Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS had a position in IBM, KMP and WY.

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