Stocks shake off Tuesday’s oil rise — plus, Amazon debuts even faster delivery
Every weekday, the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer releases the Homestretch — an actionable afternoon update, just in time for the last hour of trading on Wall Street. Haven’t seen this much since the Iran war started : Oil prices up and stocks up, together. Crude and equities have largely had an inverse relationship lately, with the former driving the bus. But not Tuesday. The major stock benchmarks — the S & P 500 , Nasdaq , and Dow — were green across the board in late afternoon trading, though off the day’s highs. Who knows if this will last or be short-lived — only time will tell. What we do know is that oil prices were trading higher Tuesday as U.S. allies were reluctant to provide tanker escorts through the Strait of Hormuz. Jim Cramer has said time and time again that until oil cargo can be freely shipped through the Strait without worry of attack, crude prices won’t be able to stabilize. Until that happens, Jim has said, there will be pressure on stocks because energy is an unavoidable cost for both consumers and businesses, which drives the spending decisions that fuel our consumption-led economy. DuPont’s $1.8 billion divestiture of its Aramids business , which includes Kevlar, is coming into the picture. The company said in a filing late Monday that the transaction has met all regulatory conditions and is expected to close on April 1. The deal was announced last August with an original timeline of the first quarter of 2026. The sale is expected to bring in about $1.1 billion in cash proceeds on a net tax basis, which we think management can use to pursue bolt-on deals to boost its health care and water end-market exposure. It’s a classic shift out of slower-growing segments and into faster-growing, less cyclical businesses. Such shifts are typically rewarded with a higher price-to-earnings multiples over time. Management also has a shareholder-friendly approach to capital allocation and could use this cash for share repurchases. DuPont is coming off last year’s successful spin-off Qnity Electronics business. It’s all part of the strategy to be a more focused and streamlined company. Amazon announced new one-hour and three-hour delivery for U.S. customers across certain areas in the country . The one-hour option is available in hundreds of cities, including Los Angeles, Chicago, and Washington, D.C. The three-hour option is offered in over 2,000 large and mid-sized cities and towns, as well as some smaller localities. Prime members will pay $9.99 for one-hour delivery and $4.99 for three-hour delivery. Customers without a Prime will pay $19.99 for one-hour delivery and $14.99 for three-hour delivery. The new speedy delivery options include more than 90,000 products, such as everyday essentials and items typically found in a local supercenter. Faster and faster delivery is enabling Amazon to go directly after the spontaneous shopping trips that have been historically driven by quick, in-person stops at retailers like CVS , Walgreens , Walmart , and Target . Up next, after the bell, are some earnings outside the portfolio , including Oklo, Lululemon, and Docusign. On Wednesday morning, we get an important update on wholesale inflation. In the afternoon, the Federal Reserve wraps up its two-day monetary policy meeting, with the expectation that central bankers will hold interest rates steady. Jerome Powell, whose term as Fed chairman expires in May, will hold a post-meeting that will be watched closely for his thoughts on the war and high oil prices. (See here for a full list of the stocks in 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.
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