My top 10 things to watch Friday, March 7 1. The U.S. added 151,000 jobs in February, below the 170,000 consensus. Unemployment rate ticked up to 4.1%. Stock futures were basically flat in response. It’s been a rough week for Wall Street. 2. Everything is fluid. That’s the key word for this tariff-filled moment in the markets. The problem: Fluidity depresses the price-to-earnings multiple that investors are willing to pay for stocks. 3. Club name Broadcom reported a perfect quarter . Beats on earnings, sales and AI revenues. No wonder shares are up 10% this morning. Could the stock reasonably get to $300 a share? This was a much-needed win for the AI trade, but I don’t think Broadcom is the tech savior. 4. Costco could’ve put up any number last night. It’s still busy lowering prices all over the world, and executives say their members are spending just fine. The idea that its February performance should knock the stock down is misguided. That may create a good chance to buy the Club name. 5. Kroger said on its earnings call yesterday that it’s expecting inflation between 1.5% and 2.5% this year. Budget-conscious households have adjusted their spending, but those on the higher end have been more resilient. The grocer’s digital business was very strong. 6. Estimates are way too low for Cracker Barrel . So is its stock price. The turn is at hand for the restaurant chain, which had been poorly run. Executives feel good about where they are on commodities, including eggs . 7. Gap shares soared 16% this morning. Same store sales at its Gap, Old Navy and Banana Republic brands all were better than expected. Even Athleta is getting better. I think they’re taking share throughout the mall. CEO Richard Dickson has turned it around. Dividend yield north of 3%. The stock deserves to trade much higher. 8. Hewlett Packard Enterprise was a huge miss. Gigantic decline in gross margins versus a year ago. A really weak market for traditional servers meant there were pricing pressures. Tariff uncertainty also is a problem for the server business. The company is planning to cut 2,500 employees. Just a terrible quarter. 9. Walgreens gets a $10 billion deal to go private done with Sycamore Partners. CEO Tim Wentworth, who took over in 2023, saved the company, which was very damaged, much more than people thought. 10. Deutsche Bank initiated coverage of railroad operator Union Pacific with a buy rating and price target of $295 a share. Really? The timing is a bit odd with all the tariff uncertainty. Sign up for my Top 10 Morning Thoughts on the Market email newsletter for free (See here for a full list of the stocks at Jim Cramer’s Charitable Trust.) As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust’s portfolio. If Jim has talked about a stock on CNBC TV, he waits 72 hours after issuing the trade alert before executing the trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB. NO SPECIFIC OUTCOME OR PROFIT IS GUARANTEED.
A worker adjusts hiring signage at a job and resource fair in Hendersonville, North Carolina, U.S., on Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024.
Allison Joyce | Bloomberg | Getty Images
My top 10 things to watch Friday, March 7
1. The U.S. added 151,000 jobs in February, below the 170,000 consensus. Unemployment rate ticked up to 4.1%. Stock futures were basically flat in response. It’s been a rough week for Wall Street.
2. Everything is fluid. That’s the key word for this tariff-filled moment in the markets. The problem: Fluidity depresses the price-to-earnings multiple that investors are willing to pay for stocks.
3. Club name Broadcom reported a perfect quarter. Beats on earnings, sales and AI revenues. No wonder shares are up 10% this morning. Could the stock reasonably get to $300 a share? This was a much-needed win for the AI trade, but I don’t think Broadcom is the tech savior.
