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華爾街日報Forget Venezuela Hype: Jim Cramer Explains Why You Missed Oil Trade And What Stocks To Buy Instead
CNBC host Jim Cramer warned investors on Monday that chasing oil stocks amid the Venezuela turmoil is a “suboptimal” strategy, urging them instead to pivot toward undervalued sectors like banking for long-term gains in 2026.
The Fallacy Of The Venezuela Trade
Despite the geopolitical shockwaves caused by President Donald Trump's actions regarding Venezuelan leadership, Cramer argues the window for easy profits has already closed.
While stocks like Chevron Corp. (NYSE:CVX), Valero Energy Corp. (NYSE:VLO), and Halliburton Co. (NYSE:HAL) surged on speculation regarding Venezuela's oil reserves, Cramer cautioned that these names “opened too high.”
“You had to pay top dollar to get into this game today,” Cramer said, noting that the infrastructure required to revitalize Venezuela's oil output will take years, not days, to rebuild.
Drawing a parallel to the Iraq War, he reminded viewers that it took nearly a decade for Iraq’s production to double. For traders buying now, the risk of losses is high as the initial excitement fades against the reality of a long, expensive reconstruction process.
What To Buy Instead: The ‘On Sale’ List
Rather than speculating on headline-driven volatility, Cramer advised investors to look for “outrageously cheap” stocks with strong fundamentals.
His top picks for 2026 focus on the financial sector, which he believes offers a safety net due to low valuations.
Cramer highlighted Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE:GS) and Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) as prime targets. He noted that Goldman is trading at just 17 times earnings—cheaper than the S&P 500 average—and is poised to benefit from a resurgence in mergers and acquisitions.
Similarly, he pointed to Capital One Financial Corp. (NYSE:COF), trading at 12 times earnings, as a key beneficiary of potential interest rate cuts and its acquisition of Discover.
Investing Over Trading
Beyond banks, Cramer identified Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) as a solid entry point following its dip, citing value creation from its orthopedic spin-off.
Ultimately, his message for the year ahead is clear: stop playing “parlor games” with geopolitical news and start accumulating high-quality companies at a discount.
“It's very rare these days that everything is unexploited,” Cramer said. “At the opening, you were simply too late.”
Price Action
The benchmark indices closed higher on the first trading day of the first full trading week of 2026.
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 index and Nasdaq 100 index, respectively, were mixed in premarket on Tuesday. The SPY was down 0.076% at $687.20, while the QQQ advanced 0.009% to $618.05, according to Benzinga Pro data.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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