Jim Cramer had absolutely no intention to join a celebration that the Dow Jones industrial Average hit 20,000.
In fact, someone put a Dow 20,000 hat on his desk, and it was downright radioactive in his mind. The last thing he wanted to see was a video of himself wearing the hat if the market ended up rolling over.
No one knows which way he market go. The downside is way too big, and the upside is nil, he said. Investors have been burned too many times. That is why he takes a clinical way to assess the stocks that led the charge to 20K, like Visa, Home Depot and Apple.
"You have to do it clinically because at any given time, if the stocks get truly overheated, you need to be willing to cut and run. Even then it is dangerous," the "Mad Money" host said.
Warren Buffett always talks about investing in America for the long-term, and owning the best of the best stocks to generate more wealth.
Cramer used the notion of long-term investing to take a look at the stocks that rallied the most, from the time when the Dow Jones industrial Average was at 10,000, to its latest level at 20,000.
He boiled it down to five winners that were totally achievable, and in some cases downright obvious. They were UnitedHealth, Disney, Apple, Home Depot and Visa.
Utility stocks have fallen out of favor on Wall Street because their yield typically viewed as less attractive when interest goes higher. They are also considered less compelling when the economy expands when compared to the growth of a cyclical company.
However, Cramer says investors could be overlooking American Electric Power, particularly because it burns a large amount of coal, and the Trump administration plans to ease up on environmental regulations for fossil fuels.
Cramer spoke with AEP's CEO Nick Akins, who said that the company anticipates a 5 to 7 percent growth rate in the future, which could lift the dividend for the company.
"This is the first quarter over the last year that we have seen growth in all the sectors," Akins said.
Shares of Lam Research took a beating on Thursday, falling more than 2 percent. However, Lam reported a better than expected quarter, and company gave much stronger than expected guidance for next quarter. Additionally, analysts raised both earnings estimates and price targets.
Cramer speculated that investors sold the stock because the company admitted that shipments in the second half of its 2017 fiscal year could be weaker than the first half. Or perhaps because the company is spending more than ever, even though much of the money went to paying down debt and buying back stock.
The most important factor to consider, Cramer said, is that the stock ran into the quarter, and this could simply be investors ringing the register. He spoke with Lam's CEO Martin Anstice, who commented on the long-term cycle for the use of flash and DRAMs.
"It's difficult today to have a conversation about a cycle because I think to a point you make regularly, this is a world of diversity in terms of ends, demands and it is a world of secular trends. And I very much believe in the long-term opportunity for Lam Research," Anstice said.
Shares of ServiceNow rose more than 3 percent on Thursday, after the company reported a strong quarter—including a significant 52 percent increase in subscription billings.
ServiceNow CEO Frank Slootman told Cramer this is the result of a successful platform strategy that he has worked on for many years, and all of the pieces of the puzzle have finally fallen into place.
The fourth quarter "was a special quarter for us. Everything went right, and you are seeing the results of that," Slootman said.
In the Lightning Round, Cramer gave his take on a few stocks from callers:
BP: "No. Tomorrow morning Chevron reports. If you want one of those big majors, I'm going to say you probably want to go with Chevron. Let's see how they do after the call."
Coherent: "Look, the semiconductor test in measurement and laser businesses are so strong, you could have mentioned Teradyne, a company that I didn't like that had an unbelievable quarter last night. You're in a good one. You're in a good sweet spot of the semiconductor cycle."