Cramer reviews November’s top ten performers on the Russell 1000

CNBC’s Jim Cramer on Thursday went through the top ten performers on the Russell 1000 index during November, explaining why these smaller stocks saw success.

“If you think we’re going to have a soft landing, if you believe inflation’s coming down, if you believe that interest rates have peaked, then you need to be a little more optimistic about life and stocks – or at least stocks,” he said. “The Russell 1000 is a list with a growth stock bias that can produce some real winners.” 

1. Affirm Holdings: Fintech outfit Affirm allows customers to “buy now, pay later” for products. Cramer said the company suffered when the Federal Reserve started tightening, but has quickly seen gains as long rates come back down.
2. Roku: Although Cramer acknowledged the streaming platform is still losing money, he said it’s gaining a reputation for being a great place to advertise. He added that investors seemed impressed by management’s comments during the most recent earnings call.
3. Coinbase: Cramer said it’s harder for investors to bet against digital crypto exchange platform Coinbase in a a falling interest rate environment. But he added that the stock has recently benefitted from a short squeeze.
4. Block: Cramer praised fintech company Block’s most recent quarter, saying that as rates come down, investors wants stocks that have some risk exposure, but also do well when small and medium-sized businesses thrive.
5. Gap: Gap stock exploded this month after reporting an increase in same-store sales at its Old Navy business, Cramer said.
6. Olaplex: According to Cramer, specialty shampoo maker Olaplex is profitable, and its stock is low-cost. He said the stock also attracts investors who want to buy companies that make products they use and like.
7. Victoria’s Secret: Lingerie retailer Victoria’s Secret recently reported a loss and poor guidance. But Cramer said its stock still sprung higher because results were not as bad as expected, with some investors perhaps assuming this may be the stock’s last bad quarter.
8. Shift4 Payments: Cramer said Shift4 Payments made the list because Wall Street likes payment processing companies when rates go lower but hates them when rates go higher.
9. DataDog: Application monitoring and analytics company DataDog performed well this month after a solid quarter, Cramer said, adding that cloud transparency has become “a huge thing.”
10. Expedia: Cramer said Expedia’s stock soared this month because expectations had been so low before it reported a good quarter. He added that he thinks the stock should never have been low in the first place.