The stock market’s problem isn’t fear; it’s altitude.

The S&P 500 continues printing fresh highs, and investors are essentially asking the same question Jim Cramer opened with: Where do you put new money to work without overpaying?

The television personality, author, and former hedge fund manager’s answer is mostly about discipline, not bravado.

Cramer screens the S&P 500 index for a simple combo: above-average earnings growth and below-average forward P/E. Also, he’s tossing out sectors he doesn’t trust (energy, materials) to avoid chasing cyclical noise.

Moreover, we’ve seen the S&P 500 rewarding dip-buyers all year, but there’s also been plenty of compression of future returns for anything that can’t keep compounding. That’s the backdrop for Cramer’s shortlist, and many of the names aren’t all the obvious AI poster children.

His pertinent picks span travel, telecom, banks, industrials, and core AI infrastructure, a mix that may appear defensive at first glance, yet carries a ton of upside potential.

Jim Cramer names 7 standout picks in his S&P 500 shortlist

Jim Cramer isn’t shy about calling out value when he sees it, even with the S&P 500 on fire, naming a handful of standout picks he believes still offer healthy upside potential.

At the top of the list is T-Mobile  (TMUS) .

The telecom giant finds itself in the middle of a leadership transition, with longtime CEO Mike Sievert set to shift into a vice chair role on Nov. 1, handing the reins to Srini Gopalan. 

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Cramer isn’t worried. “I believe in this team,” he said, throwing more weight around the company’s projected 19% earnings growth at just over 18x forward earnings. Also, its stock is up roughly 8% year-to-date.

Travel also gets his vote.

Royal Caribbean  (RCL) is “my favorite of the cruise stocks,” Cramer said, after the company posted a superb Q2 adjusted EPS of $4.38 and lifted full-year guidance to $15.41-$15.55. On top of that, the stock has surged 48% in 2025, nearly doubling over 12 months.

He also likes Expedia  (EXPE) , calling it “very cheap” compared with its competition in Booking. Expedia’s Q2 showed adjusted EPS growth of 21% with margins growing at a rapid clip, helping the stock climb 21% year-to-date.

On the financial side, Capital One  (COF) is a standout, due to its completed tie-up with Discover Bank in May. Cramer calls it “such a buy” at just 11x earnings, with 14% growth expected next year.

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Citigroup  (C) gets even higher praise from Cramer: “Boy, is that strong.” He considers Citi the cheapest of the big banks, with Q2 profits coming in ahead of expectations and a massive $4 billion buyback on deck.

Cramer isn’t done with industrials, either.

He’s sticking with Caterpillar  (CAT) , with the stock up 34% in 2025. After a massive rebound since April, he still sees “more upside,” noting a robust order book and normalized margins.

Also, in tech, he picks Dell Enterprises  (DELL) as one of the “core players in AI infrastructure.” The company recently bumped its FY26 AI server shipment outlook to $20 billion on the back of orders from Elon Musk’s xAI and cloud player CoreWeave, pushing its stock up 15% this year.

Some of Jim Cramer’s other recommended stock picks:

• American Express (AXP)
• Charles Schwab (SCHW)
• Chubb (CB)
• Apollo Global (APO)
• Incyte (INCY)

Tariffs, earnings, and new highs for the S&P 500

The S&P 500 sits at 6,693.75 after Sept. 22’s record close, extending a three-day streak of fresh highs.

The year 2025 started off with a steady bump as earnings beats piled up, but policy noise quickly took the wheel in April when the Trump administration rolled out new tariff plans under the “Liberation Day” banner.

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The announcement jarred risk appetite, but through early summer, headlines swung between tariff threats and pauses. By July 7, the administration extended a 90-day tariff delay. 

Even so, mid-July spikes in tariff talk knocked stocks before the buyers came back.

Since then, the index has been on an upward ascent, with resilient earnings and easier financial conditions, helping log fresh records into late September.

• Level: S&P 500 at 6,693.75 after Sept. 22’s close (record).
• Year-to-date gains: +13.8%; September: +3.6%.
• Tariffs: April rollout rattled markets with pauses/delays steadying the sentiment.
• July wobble: Fresh tariff salvos briefly hit stocks before a quick rebound.
• Records: The Index has kept printing new highs into late September. 

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