Cramer Continues Warming Up To AMD After Listening To CEO

Jim Cramer hasn’t always been a big fan of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. AMD stock, but after AMD’s big earnings beat this week and a conversation with company management, Cramer seems to be coming around.

What Happened

Back in October, Cramer joked that AMD only exists because Intel Corporation INTC needs a company to point to to defend against accusations that Intel has a chip monopoly. Cramer said the “party ended” for AMD investors when the stock peaked at $14 prior to its third-quarter earnings report and said AMD simply hasn’t been able to “get the right chips in the right hands at the right prices.” The stock was trading around $14 at that time.

In March, Cramer again shot down AMD on his “Mad Money” show. When a caller asked about AMD, Cramer said CEO Lisa Su is doing a great job, but AMD has stalled in the face of tough competition from Intel and NVIDIA Corporation NVDA.

A month later, Cramer’s stance on AMD softened further when a “Lightning Round” caller asked about the impact that a slumping cryptocurrency mining business would have on AMD stock.

“Straight down because of bitcoin? Straight down? I don't buy that,” Cramer said. “I think under $10 you want to pick up some AMD.”

What's Next

Cramer completed his 180-degree turn this week after listening to Su’s earnings call following a big AMD quarterly beat.

"My conclusion after listening to the [post-earnings conference] call and speaking to Su? I think the stock's a buy for the long term. That's a tremendous achievement," Cramer said.

AMD's stock was trading under $2 as recently as February 2016. Shares were trading around $11.14 at time of publication.

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