Mad Money

The market and fear of Ebola: Cramer weighs in

Ebola disruptive to travel and leisure: Cramer
VIDEO4:0504:05
Ebola disruptive to travel and leisure: Cramer

The overall market has become jittery, and with each new domestic Ebola case that is discovered—such as the health care worker in Dallas—there is one group of stocks in particular that will continue to fall: travel and leisure.

Flash back to a few weeks ago and the market focus was on the decline in fuel costs, with Ebola in the back of investors' minds. Now the focus has shifted, with Ebola front and center. As a result, the focus also moved to travel and leisure stocks.

Wondering which portion of your travel and leisure portfolio could be affected? Look no further than cruise stocks.

Jim Cramer thinks the disruption to this group has been so radical that, if not for Ebola, these stocks would have otherwise only suffered about half of their current damage during the general selloff.

He even recently profiled cruise stocks as having tremendous momentum because they are main beneficiary when oil prices drop. However even Cramer knows that investing is about being adaptable and being able to adjust your perspective as things change.

A member of the CG Environmental HazMat team disinfects the entrance to the residence of a health worker at the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital who has contracted Ebola in Dallas, Texas, October 12, 2014.
Jaime R. Carrero | Reuters

"In fact, I think that cruise ships might be the most vulnerable of the travel and leisure cohort, maybe even more than airplanes, which themselves have a huge problem. It's simply disruptive to their business," Cramer added.

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Cramer thinks this group particularly lacks support, while Carnival cruise lines has already gone from $41 to $34 even though it just reported a stellar third quarter. Royal Caribbean has declined from $68 to $56, while Norwegian cruise lines just spent $3 billion to buy Prestige, an acquisition that boosted the stock.

All those positives have now been repealed by Ebola.

Just the fear of someone contracting Ebola on a cruise ship could impact bookings, and that notion could spread to other industries as well. Airline stocks have recently rallied and reversed. What about casinos—will investors gamble on this industry as well?

"Do not try to be a hero. Even after last weeks' clobbering, I say please be careful, as Ebola's scare is much worse than its reality. But that sometimes is all you need to know," said the "Mad Money" host.

Going forward, Cramer thinks that this issue cannot be put to bed until we know more about the illness. It must either be contained, or a vaccine must be developed. And if gas prices go up, Cramer says there may be even more pain coming for cruise ships, airlines and the rest of the travel and leisure industry.



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