CNBC’s Jim Cramer alerted investors on Friday that next week will be a consequential one for Wall Street, pointing to a heavy load of quarterly earnings and a Federal Reserve meeting.
“Make no mistake, next week matters,” Cramer said. He later added, “The bottom line? Mag Sevens. Momentum pays. Red-hot industrials, and a Fed meeting. All in front of you. Keep your head up, [there’s] much more to come.”
Monday brings earnings from steel manufacturer Nucor, which Cramer described as the “best steel company in the world.” Despite Nucor sharing a lackluster mid-quarter update in December, the stock has nevertheless rallied since then, in part because investors hope rate cuts will help spur economic growth. If Nucor gets hit following the release Monday, Cramer said investors should consider buying into the weakness.
On Tuesday, Boeing and General Motors will release results.
Boeing shares have rallied substantially over the past two months, so Cramer believes investors shouldn’t expect another huge leg up after the report. Don’t sell the stock just yet though, he said, because it’s only year one of the aircraft maker’s turnaround story. Meanwhile, Cramer said General Motors CEO Mary Barra hasn’t received enough credit for all she’s done to revamp the company. If the stock gets dinged on earnings day, Cramer said it could be a solid time to buy.
Wednesday is an especially busy earnings day. Corning, Danaher, Starbucks, GE Vernova, Meta Platforms, and Microsoft – all holdings in Cramer’s Charitable Trust, the portfolio used by CNBC Investing Club – will release results.
Cramer isn’t expecting a huge move higher from GE Vernova when the gas turbine maker’s results come out Wednesday morning. “I love it long-term, but the expectations are sky-high for the moment,” Cramer said. “I think you need a better entry point.” After nearly doubling in 2025, shares of GE Vernova are up less than 1% so far in 2026. Like GE Vernova, Cramer said Corning is another great stock to own long-term because it benefits from AI tailwinds, specifically copper being replaced by fiber optics.
In the case of Danaher, Cramer said he believes this could be the company’s first truly strong quarter in years. A resurgence in biotech orders is a boon for Danaher, which provides the picks and shovels used in drug discovery and manufacturing.
Cramer said he’s worried that Starbucks is heading into earnings “wildly overbought,” which means it will take “insanely strong” numbers to keep propelling shares higher. However, “I do like it for the long-haul, [and we’re] not going anywhere,” he said.
Cramer said he believes Microsoft shares have been under pressure into earnings — along with the rest of the software cohort — on AI-driven disruption risks. Cramer described this as a false worry, though. Meanwhile, when Meta reports, Wall Street will be paying close attention to what CEO Mark Zuckerberg has to say about the Facebook parent’s return on investment in artificial intelligence.
On Thursday, Wall Street will hear from Honeywell, one of the industrial stocks that have been on a roll lately. That’s a difficult setup that could result in a disappointing stock reaction, he argued, especially since investors are still awaiting the conglomerate’s breakup later this year.
Later that day, Apple will post results. The tech stock has been down for eight consecutive weeks, in part due to concerns about higher memory costs squeezing Apple’s margins. Cramer isn’t changing his, “own it, don’t trade it” view on Apple, though.
On top of all the earnings, the Federal Reserve will announce its latest interest rate decision on Wednesday afternoon. The central bank is widely expected to leave rates unchanged, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool. Plus, Cramer said there’s a possibility that President Donald Trump announces Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s replacement Wednesday, which he believes could move the market more than the rate news itself.
