Cramer’s Gameplan: You Ready for Next Week?

Next Week's Earnings Data

Mad Money host Jim Cramer breaks down all the companies reporting earnings next week, including Bed, Bath & Beyond and Nike.

Dreaming of a White Christmas? Get your headsout of the snow, there's still a full week of market opportunities between nowand then!

What follows is the Mad Money host's "Game Plan" for the week beginning Monday, December 17th.

MONDAY DECEMBER 17TH

On Monday Cramer will be listening to Jeff Immelt.

"General Electric has a big analyst meeting on Monday. My charitable trust owns a ton of GE because we believe that it's a terrific play on several huge themes including energy, conservation, natural gas use, aerospace, and healthcare for our aging population."

" I expect GE to be very upbeat, especially given that the company just boosted its dividend by 12% today. This meeting will be the most talked about event of the day."

Also on Monday, the Street hears the Empire State manufacturing report from the New York Fed.

"We're now in full blown weak data mode, so the Empire Manufacturing number will actually set the tone of the day. The Fed told us that businesses are now ratcheting down spending, so we may see that here."

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TUESDAY DECEMBER 18TH

True it's the holiday season and not earnings season, but earnings will be front and center on Tuesday.

"Oracle reports after the close on Tuesday. I'm hearing so many rumblings of a better than expected quarter that it makes me nervous. The stock has rallied some 23 percent for the year, so if the quarter's not lights out, I think you could see a beat-down," said Cramer.

WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 19TH

On Wednesday, Cramer will be busy.

"Wednesday morning we get results from General Mills. Nothing like a stock that goes up a little bit each quarter, delivering superior returns over time, that also allows you to sleep at night. General Mills hasn't done anything of late, but you can pocket that fine dividend and hold on for the leisurely ride."

"After the close we hear from Accenture, which may be, along with IBM, the best consulting company on earth. If I had to buy one stock next week for a trade, I have to admit I'd buy Accenture on Tuesday because it has rather consistently guided up when it reports. Just a terrific company."

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Jeffrey Coolidge | Iconica | Getty Images

"Bed Bath & Beyond also reports Wednesday. I'm worried about Bed Bath, a stock that my charitable trust has a small position in, because the stock acts so horrible even on good days. It's already down a ton, so you might ask how much worse could it get, but my answer would be take a look at Dollar General. I thought that one had bottomed and I was wrong because the company had margin pressure—making less on every dollar of what was sold. I fear the same thing could happen with Bed Bath."

"Then there's Paychex. What do I want to hear from Paychex? Is the fiscal cliff already crimping what's been a terrible time for small business? Let's listen to what Paychex has to say. The actual stock, of course, is paying you to wait for a turn, even as the government is prolonging the pain."

THURSDAY DECEMBER 20TH

On Thursday the Mad Money host will have cars on the brain – also food and money.

"Thursday morning we hear from CarMax. The used car business does well when there are a lot of new cars on the road, so the recovery in the domestic auto biz over the last couple of years is now filtering down to CarMax, which makes more money from selling relatively new used cars. I think we'll hear very good things."

"Darden also gives us results Thursday. The bar has been set very low here by none other than the company itself, and as far as I'm concerned, it's time for a new management team at Darden if they fail to get it together soon."

"We also get results from Discover Financial. This credit card company's been the cheapest of the big three, including Mastercard, which I own for the charitable trust, and Visa. Discover has consistently beaten expectations, which is why it's up 68 percent for the year. All that said, believe it or not, the stock might have a lot more room to run because even after that move it isn't expensive, selling at just 8 times earnings, whereas Visa sells at 20 and Mastercard at 21 times earnings."

"After the close Thursday, Nike reports. Few stocks have become more controversial than this one. Here's a company that was shooting the lights out in China and making up for all sorts of North American weakness. Now it's just the opposite, with inventory concerns in China keeping a lid on the stock. I'm looking for that lid to be blown off by a turn in China, while the U.S. remains strong."