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. Market update : Stocks are higher on Monday, overcoming a soft open. But once again, the largest companies are driving the action, with the market-weighted S & P 500 outperforming the Invesco S & P 500 Equal Weight ETF . The data center trade got a boost after Nvidia and OpenAI announced a massive strategic partnership to build and deploy at least 10 gigawatts of AI data centers with Nvidia systems. Nvidia is investing up to $100 billion in OpenAI to support the partnership, and this agreement is adding runway to the AI technology and AI infrastructure trade, which includes industrial names Eaton and GE Vernova . Nike to the Bullpen : We’re looking to overhaul our Bullpen with fresh ideas in the coming weeks, and we’re starting Monday by adding Nike to the watch list. The global leader in sportswear was one of the best growth stories for decades, but the stock has been in the house of pain since late 2021. Nike has faced some significant challenges over the past few years. Part of the weakness stemmed from its exposure to China, where sales suffered due to the country’s struggling economy. There were structural issues, too. Under the leadership of former CEO John Donahoe, the company went all-in on its direct-to-consumer business but lost its innovation edge, allowing competitors like On Holding , Hoka, Lululemon , and New Balance to take market share. A string of poor results cost Donahoe his job last September, leading Nike veteran Elliott Hill to come out of retirement in an effort to turn things around. Since taking over, Hill has announced a series of senior leadership changes, got Nike back to its roots of focusing on running, basketball, football, training, and sportswear, and has restored its relationships with retail partners, including Amazon , where it’s back directly selling products after leaving the online platform in 2019. Nike’s last earnings report in June showed that confidence in the turnaround was starting to happen. It reported better-than-expected quarterly results, and commentary for the year was well received. For Nike to get back to growth, it first needs a clean inventory slate. Having excess inventory can crush margins due to forced markdowns. One of the important lines from the last earnings call was that management expected to exit the first half of its fiscal year 2026 with a “healthy and clean” inventory position. Since the first half of fiscal year 2026 ends in November, it means inventories will be clean ahead of the holiday selling season. Nike is scheduled to report earnings on Sept. 30, and we’re starting to see analysts get bullish ahead of the results. In the past couple of weeks, Cowen and RBC Capital both lifted their ratings on Nike to buy from hold, while Baird on Monday named it a “bullish fresh pick.” We’ll be watching the results closely for more signs of a turnaround here. Up next: There are no major earnings after the closing bell on Monday. On Tuesday, AutoZone reports earnings, and the S & P Global Purchasing Managers’ Indexes (PMIs) are released. (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.
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