Jim Cramer's Investing Club meeting Thursday: Stocks rise, Eli Lilly, Meta

Published Thu, Jan 26 202312:12 PM EST

Every weekday the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer holds a "Morning Meeting" livestream at 10:20 a.m. ET. Here's a recap of Thursday's key moments. Continue to be cautious Buy Eli Lilly Meta needs more cost cuts 1. Continue to be cautious Stocks edged up Thursday on the back of fresh data showing the U.S. economy grew by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, ahead of analysts' forecasts. The S & P 500 rose 0.32% in midday trading. At the same time, the S & P 500 Short Range Oscillator , at 4.9%, showed the market to be less overbought than last week. Despite those positive indicators, we continue to urge investors to be cautious when adding to their portfolios, given ongoing uncertainty around the direction of equities markets. 2. Buy Eli Lilly We recommend investors buy shares of Eli Lilly (LLY), with the stock falling slightly Thursday. Shares of the pharmaceuticals company were trading down around 0.5%, at $347.96 apiece. JPMorgan Chase on Wednesday reiterated Eli Lilly as a "top idea" ahead of its fourth-quarter results on Feb. 2. The bank expects 2023 to be a "catalyst year" for the company due to several drugs in the pipeline and pending approval for Mounjaro, a diabetes medication, to be used as a treatment for obesity. 3. Meta needs more cost cuts Piper Sandler said Wednesday that Meta Platforms ' (META) 2023 operating expenses and capital expenditures could come in below expectations, which would boost the company's earnings and free cash flow. That's a promising development for the beaten-down technology stock, as investors have been primarily frustrated with Meta's overspending. But while the company has taken steps to rein in costs, including laying off 11,000 employees late last year, CEO Mark Zuckerberg will need to do more to manage expenses in order for the stock to make a full comeback. Meta stock was trading up more than 3% Wednesday, at $145.87 a share. (Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust is long LLY, META. See here for a full list of the stocks.) 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.