Mad Money

Jim Cramer shuffles his 'Humanization of Pets ETF' — 'It's paid off in 2019'

Key Points
  • "The humanization of pets has been a fabulous secular growth story — one that's really paid off in 2019," CNBC's Jim Cramer says.
  • The "Mad Money" host rebalances his "Humanization of Pets ETF," which covers 10 names in the sector and, while not an actually listed ETF, helps him track the segment.
  • "And now that we've adjusted our Mad Money Pets ETF, I bet it can keep going higher," he says.
Jim Cramer's 'Humanization of Pets ETF' has paid off in 2019
VIDEO4:3404:34
Jim Cramer's 'Humanization of Pets ETF' has paid off in 2019

CNBC's Jim Cramer on Monday shuffled the hypothetical, pet care-focused exchange-traded fund he assembled last year.

Cramer rebalanced his "Humanization of Pets ETF," which covers 10 names in the sector and, while not an actually listed ETF, helps the "Mad Money" host track the segment.

Cramer added three new stocks, removed two and reweighed two existing members. The bucket of stocks is up about 5% since its August inception, outpacing the 2.6% return in that same span, he said.

In 2019, however, Cramer's Pets ETF is up about 25%, topping the S&P's 16% run, he added.

"The humanization of pets has been a fabulous secular growth story — one that's really paid off in 2019," the host said. "And now that we've adjusted our Mad Money Pets ETF, I bet it can keep going higher."

New to the family

Chewy: Chewy, the online pet store that debuted on public markets Friday, is a new entrant in Cramer's Pets ETF with a 12.5% allocation. The day of its IPO, Cramer told viewers to add it to the shopping list and be patient after the stock opened at $36, $14 higher than its $22 deal price.

"I adore Chewy the company, but ideally, yes, I would like to wait for the stock to cool off a bit before I endorsed it," he said. "I say we give it a 12.5% allocation. Although, again, if you want to buy it, you should gradually buy it on the way down. But I do sanction buying it a little bit right here."

Covetrus: A big distributor of veterinary supplies, Covetrus is a new entity that resulted from the merger between Vets First Choice and the animal health unit once under Henry Schein. The company "laid an egg" in its first earnings report in March, Cramer said, and the stock is not cheap trading at 25-times 2019 earnings estimates.

"This company is an important player in the pet space, but it still needs to prove itself. So let's put it in the ETF, but only with a 6.25% weighting."

Elanco: Elanco, an animal health provider, spun off from Eli Lilly in late 2018. After going public at $24 per share, the stock began trading at $32 and has maintained those levels.

"Lilly spun out Elanco via an IPO, which led investors to bid up the stock, and it's been digesting those gains ever since. Still, I like the company. Straightforward story," Cramer said. "We'll give it a 7.5% weighting."

Reevaluating

Central Garden & Pet: Central Garden & Pet is a lawn and garden goods distributor, but most of its business is in pet supplies. The company reported a rough quarter in February, but the stock has since bottomed after it delivered a better-than-expected performance in May.

"At these levels, the stock has gotten a lot cheaper than it was last year, and, you know what, it would be a mistake to totally bail on it," Cramer said. "So let's keep Central Garden & Pet in the ETF, but cut its weighting from 10% to 5%."

PetIQ: PetIQ, which makes drugs for animals and operates veterinary clinics, saw its stock peak above $40 in September before it plummeted during the market selloff that closed out 2018. The company moved to acquire VIP Petcare in 2018, which attracted short sellers, and Perrigo's animal unit in May, a deal worth $185 million, Cramer said.

"While I don't have a great read on that VIP Petcare situation, the story seems intact to me, and I still think it has enormous potential," he said. "But we wanna cut PetIQ's allocation from 10% to 5%, but leave it in the portfolio."

Grounds for removal

PetMed Express: PetMed Express, Cramer noted, is the largest animal-oriented pharmacy in the country and the company behind 1-800-PETMEDS. PetMed is facing pressure from competitors in the pet space, including Chewy and an online pet pharmacy launched by Walmart, he said.

"While the stock seems cheap, I have a hard time believing PetMed will be able to make the numbers, so we're removing it from the Humanization of Pets ETF entirely," he said.

Henry Schein: "We also need to remove Henry Schein," Cramer said, "because the company spun off its animal health unit back in February. They merged it with Vets First Choice to create a new entity, Covetrus."

Remaining stocks

Cramer's "Humanization of Pets ETF" includes six other names. Their weightings depend on their exposure to the sector.

The pure plays of Idexx Laboratories, Freshpet and Zoetis are some of the top holdings in the ETF, weighing 15% each. General Mills, J.M. Smucker and Walmart, which all sell pet foods and products, have between 4.5% and 8% weights each, Cramer said.

WATCH: Cramer reviews stocks in the pet care and supply sector

Jim Cramer shuffles his 'Humanization of Pets ETF' — 'It's paid off in 2019'
VIDEO10:5410:54
Jim Cramer shuffles his 'Humanization of Pets ETF' — 'It's paid off in 2019'

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