Every weekday, the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer releases the Homestretch — an actionable afternoon update, just in time for the last hour of trading on Wall Street. Markets: The markets are off to a strong start to the week and trying to build off the rebound that started on March 14. The S & P 500 bounced on Friday and finished the session in positive territory after President Donald Trump said his reciprocal tariff plan would have “flexibility.” While details were limited, this news was enough to lift stocks. Tariff optimism is similarly boosting the market Monday. On Sunday, The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump’s upcoming tariffs are expected to be narrower than anticipated, targeting specific industries and sectors instead of an across-the-board approach. To this point, Trump said on Monday afternoon that he will be announcing tariffs on autos “very shortly” and pharmaceutical tariffs could come soon. Additionally, some countries are expected to be excluded from tariffs, according to Bloomberg News . While the Trump administration’s tariff plans are always subject to change — and the market moved off sessions highs after the auto comments — the market is rallying on easing concerns that trade policy won’t be as broad and protectionist as previously feared. Eli Lilly : The health-care sector is lagging Monday in favor of tech and more cyclical stocks, but Eli Lilly shares are one of the biggest gainers in the group, up more than 2%. A slew of first-quarter previews were published Monday looking at what the Club holding may report. JPMorgan said it expects solid quarterly results for the pharmaceutical company. Although the analyst’s first-quarter revenue forecast is $75 million below the Street consensus estimate, we don’t think investors should be alarmed. It looks like the softness is coming from the legacy part of Lilly’s portfolio. Where the sales matter most is in the GLP-1 part of the portfolio, and there JPMorgan is $285 million above consensus for sales of type 2 diabetes treatment Mounjaro and weight-loss drug Zepbound, which are both once-weekly injectables. JPMorgan also pointed out a favorable risk-reward heading into one of the company’s late-stage readouts for its oral GLP-1 known as orforglipron . The update is expected sometime in the second quarter, but JPMorgan wrote it could be announced when Eli Lilly reports its first-quarter results on May 1. In general, we’re bullish on Eli Lilly’s orforglipron, a once-daily pill that could expand the pool of potential GLP-1 patients and also be used in maintenance for people who transition off injectables. We believe it could be a multibillion market opportunity if its weight-loss efficacy is on par with Novo Nordisk’s injectable Wegovy and has a similar side-effect tolerability. Something to keep in mind, though: The first batch of late-stage orforglipron data is expected to be for a trial with type 2 diabetes patients, which generally show less weight loss from GLP-1s than people with only obesity. The tolerability data will be key with this first readout. A separate trial looking at the drug’s efficacy in obese patients without diabetes is expected later in the year. Eli Lilly is clearly bullish on the drug’s overall opportunity, too. As JPMorgan pointed out, Lilly recently disclosed it has built about $550 million worth of prelaunch inventory. The company wants to be ready to go if the drug is approved by the Food and Drug Administration sometime in early 2026 . Up next: It’s a slower week of earnings. Reporting after the closing bell Monday is homebuilder KB Home . Reporting before the opening bell Tuesday is McCormick . The earnings and commentary from the spice maker are always worth a listen because the company is the quintessential slowdown stock. When people are worried about the economy, they are more likely to cook at home instead of dining out. (See here for a full list of the stocks in Jim Cramer’s Charitable Trust.) 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.
Every weekday, the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer releases the Homestretch — an actionable afternoon update, just in time for the last hour of trading on Wall Street.
