Cramer expects omicron-related stock slump to be short-lived, so he’s putting cash to work

CNBC’s Jim Cramer said Monday he expects the Covid omicron-related slide on Wall Street to be relatively short-lived, contending investors should “stay the course” and look to strategically put money to work.

“The stock market … can turn on a dime, so you need to be on the lookout for stories about how the omicron strain isn’t particularly damaging as long as you’re vaccinated and boosted,” said the “Mad Money” host, who earlier Monday revealed he recently tested positive for Covid. He credited his three doses of Moderna‘s Covid vaccine for why he only had mild symptoms.

“As more people realize they won’t have to go to the hospital or take a few days off if they get sick — again, assuming they’ve got their shots — I expect the market to be able to mount a comeback,” Cramer said.

For that reason, Cramer said he thinks there’s “no need to dump your stocks here,” noting that his charitable investment trust actually made some purchases during Monday’s session. All three major U.S. equity averages closed in the red.

The charitable trust on Monday added to its holdings in Chevron and started a new position in Bausch Health.

“This was Day One of the sell-off when everything goes down indiscriminately, although you did see buyers of the consumer products coming in at the end of the day, ” Cramer said. Nine of the 11 S&P 500 sectors were lower Monday, as were 24 of the 30 stocks in the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

“On day two, the slowdown stocks start to gain strength — think health care and the consumer packaged goods plays — so you might want to pick some of those up, particularly in the health care category,” Cramer said.

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