Cramer's 'Mad Money' Recap: Time to Change Gears

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NEW YORK ( TheStreet) -- It's time to get a little defensive, raise a little cash and have some patience, Jim Cramer told his "Mad Money" TV show viewers Wednesday after yet another volatile day on Wall Street.

Cramer reminded viewers that no one's ever made a dime by panicking, but with the markets getting shaky it's certainly time to change gears.

Cramer admitted he's not crazy about the markets right now, and is even raising extra cash at his charitable trust, Action Alerts PLUS . He said he didn't like last week's snap-back rally nor today's big market opening, and he's also not a fan of how quickly interest rates are heading higher. But despite all those negatives, one fact remains -- companies are doing better.

While the notion that more business means the Federal Reserve will eventually raise interest rates is true, the bigger picture is that more business also means more profits, especially for all those companies that have lowered costs, lowered their leverage and have lots of cash on the books, Cramer said.

As JPMorgan Chase ( JPM) CEO Jamie Dimon said recently at an investor conference, the corporate world is in fabulous shape and the U.S. housing market has turned a corner, making owning a home more affordable than ever. That's all great news for stocks, said Cramer, although it make take a little time for the markets to shift its thinking.

So while things continue to be shaky, Cramer advised taking profits and raising a little cash, then being patient and waiting for the dust to settle before buying in for the next leg higher.

Executive Decision: Manny Chiraco

In the "Executive Decision" segment, Cramer sat down with Manny Chiraco, chairman and CEO of PVH Corp ( PVH), which delivered a monster earnings beat that sent shares up 6.6% in after-hours trading.

Chiraco said PVH saw strength across the board, especially in the company's Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger brands. He said the weather in the U.S. put a damper on April sales, but those sales returned in spades in May.

When asked about sluggish sales in Europe, Chiraco noted that while Spain and Italy remain weak for PVH, other countries in Europe are fairing better and PVH saw stronger May sales across Europe as well. Even in emerging markets like Brazil and China, Chiraco said, PVH was able to deliver solid growth numbers.

Turning to some of the company's product lines, Chiraco said he's not happy with the quality of some Calvin Klein items, particularly jeans, and is working to increase both quality and design. He said that just four months into its acquisition of Warnaco, PVH still has a lot of work to do.

When asked about the company's store-within-a-store concept at JC Penney ( JCP), Chiraco said he's still happy with the arrangement and looks forward to working more closely with that company's new CEO. "I still believe in JC Penney," Chiraco said.

Cramer said he's still a believer in PVH, a company that continues to deliver on all of its promises.

Slam Dunk, Part 2

As the National Basketball Association finals continue, so does Cramer, dishing up another Miami versus San Antonio match up.

This time, the financial world: Texas' Cullen/Frost Bankers ( CFR) against the Miami-based REIT of EquityOne ( EQY).

Cramer said Cullen/Frost has been an excellent regional bank that specializes in commercial and consumer loans at its 110 banking centers. The company has a 3.1% yield and a solid track record of low costs and even lower loan losses. Cullen/Frost is in Texas, where the regional economy is booming and unemployment sits a full point below the national average.

Meanwhile, EquityOne, which had been a solid commercial REIT in the hottest of urban areas in the south, has seen its shares crushed by 11% as the market has begun rotating out of high-yielding REITs and back into bonds. Cramer reminded viewers that even a 3.7% dividend yield cannot overcome a 11% decline in principal.

So while 30 days ago EquityOne was a solid performer, in today's markets it is clearly not. He said unlike Cullen/Frost, which benefits from higher interest rates, EquityOne has been hurt badly by them. Cullen/Frost, he concluded, is in a business that works going forward, while EquityOne's business has worked in the past.

Lightning Round

In the Lightning Round, Cramer was bullish on Axiall ( AXLL), Mercadolibre ( MELI), Sysco ( SYY), Cisco Systems ( CSCO), Comerica ( CMA) and TiVo ( TIVO).

Cramer was bearish on Newmont Mining ( NEM).

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: Weyerhaeuser ( WY), Eaton ( ETN), Bristol-Myers Squibb ( BMY), EMC ( EMC) and EOG Resources ( EOG).

Cramer said that this portfolio "rocks" and is properly diversified.

The second portfolio's top holdings included: Walgreen ( WAG), Union Pacific ( UNP), Berkshire Hathaway ( BRK.B), Lorillard ( LO) and Barrick Gold ( ABX).

Cramer also blessed this portfolio as well diversified.

The third portfolio had: Alkermes ( ALKS), American Capital Agency ( AGNC), Medical Properties Trust ( MPW), Annaly Capital ( NLY) and Radian Group ( RDN) as its top five stocks.

Cramer said this portfolio can't afford to own American Capital, Annaly and Radian, which are all in the mortgage business. He advised keeping Radian and adding a stock like Berkshire Hathaway in order to be diversified.

The fourth portfolio's top stocks were: Abbott Laboratories ( ABT), Facebook ( FB), Linn Energy ( LINE), Apple ( AAPL) and Joy Global ( JOY).

Cramer said that this portfolio is also perfectly diversified.

No Huddle Offense

In his "No Huddle Offense" segment, Cramer sounded off about the price of oil, saying it's time for the U.S. to take back control of this most precious commodity.

Cramer said it's totally absurd that worldwide oil prices are based on Brent crude which, as it turns out, is pegged to the output of just four oil fields in the North Sea -- four fields that are seeing declining output and declining relevance as places like the U.S. and Iraq are seeing huge spikes in production.

The U.S. still imports 7.5 million barrels of oil a day, but it doesn't have to, said Cramer. Those in Washington seem happy with the status quo while at the same time remain hostile towards the use of fossil fuels.

In reality, the U.S. has the ability to lower gas prices by 20% if it only approved projects such as the Keystone XL pipeline and endorsed natural gas as a bridge fuel to renewable energy.

We don't have to tolerate high oil prices. The time to change that status quo is now, he concluded.

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

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

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At the time of publication, Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS had a position in AAPL, CSCO, ETN, FB, JOY, JPM, LINE and WY.

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