CNBC's Jim Cramer on Wednesday urged investors to look past the headlines about a potential government shutdown and focus on what the market just revealed through its winners and losers.
Cramer noted that the stocks that outperformed in the third quarter provide a useful roadmap for the final months of the year. He said many fund managers buy July-to-September winners in Q4 to demonstrate to clients that they own the right names.
Still, Cramer cautioned that while these leaders could continue to advance, the largest leaps of the year may already have occurred. "The third-quarter winners are a terrific place to be," he said, "but the biggest gains may, indeed, have already been made."
Top performers included AppLovin, a mobile ad-tech firm using AI and analytics to boost app monetization, which jumped 105% in Q3 as institutional interest grew. Data-storage names Western Digital and Seagate surged about 87% and 63%, respectively, driven by rising demand linked to the AI boom.
Warner Bros. Discovery climbed roughly 70% after balance-sheet improvements, stronger box-office results and takeover speculation involving Paramount Skydance, a development Cramer said could accelerate