Boeing moves closer to a huge deal — plus, positive signs for one of our AI plays

CNBC Finance

4 min read

Every weekday, the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer releases the Homestretch â an actionable afternoon update, just in time for the last hour of trading on Wall Street. Stocks dropped on Friday , capping a volatile week in the markets that pushed oil prices above $90 for the first time since October 2023. Typically, when geopolitical tensions run high, stocks face additional pressure on Fridays as investors worry about what could unfold over the weekend. Interestingly, the speed of oil's surge on Friday didn't match the S & P 500 's 1% decline at midday. In other words, with oil up 11%, you might have expected stocks to fall much more. Further complicating the picture was a shockingly weak jobs report. The economy lost 92,000 jobs in February, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, giving back most of January's 126,000 gains. The unemployment rate also ticked up to 4.4%, weighing on economically sensitive groups such as banks and consumer discretionary stocks. Boeing moves closerÂ to receiving its largest orders in company history. Shares jumped a few dollars Friday after Bloomberg reported the aircraft maker and China are nearing a deal for 500 737 Max narrowbody jets. We've heard the 500-order figure mentioned before, but it's significant because China hasn't placed an order since 2017. If a deal is going to be made, expect it to come when the U.S. and China meet in early April. Also, Bloomberg's latest reporting said the two sides are discussing a widebody order of about 100 787 Dreamliners and 777X jets, which would be another incremental positive. But if that happens, the report said it will likely be announced at a later date. Qnity Electronics announced a small deal on Friday to accelerate capacity and support customer demand. It paid $61.5 million to acquire an advanced semiconductor research and manufacturing facility in Taiwan. The new site won't be operational until early next year, but it sends a positive signal of the level of demand management anticipates over the next few years. Qnity Electronics shares have been hit hard this week, falling about 10% amid profit-taking across some of this year's biggest winners. When it reported earnings last week, the 2026 outlook showed strong AI-related momentum, which should continue as manufacturers ramp up production of more advanced chips. However, this stock is one of the more volatile names in the portfolio because it is relatively new to the public markets and is followed by only a handful of analysts. Because of these swings, we are waiting for signs of stabilization and potentially lower prices before stepping in opportunistically. Next week , no companies in the portfolio are scheduled to report earnings, but some notable ones we'll have our eyes on include Oracle , Casey's General Stores , Campbell's , Dick's Sporting Goods , Dollar General , Adobe , and Ulta Beauty . In addition, we'll see new inflation data in the February CPI report and the January PCE price index, along with the second read of fourth-quarter GDP and the University of Michigan Sentiment Index. (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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Boeing moves closer to a huge deal — plus, positive signs for one of our AI plays

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