Cramer cheers Monday’s tech gains, but tells investors to keep a diverse portfolio with an eye towards health care

CNBC’s Jim Cramer applauded Monday’s market gains for Big Tech, which had seen a sell-off in the early days of the new year as Wall Street shifted its focus to a number of other sectors. He advised investors to keep a diverse portfolio, buying shares in health-care companies and paying attention to industry leaders who are taking the stage this week at JPMorgan‘s health-care conference in San Francisco.

“In the end, stocks like Microsoft and Nvidia, which are bringing AI to the PC, and stocks like Apple, which is integrating artificial intelligence with the cellphone, are going to offer amazing investment opportunities,” Cramer said. “I think a well-rounded portfolio needs to have health care, too, and that’s the best reason to buy shares in the companies you’ll hear from today and tomorrow coming to you from beautiful San Francisco at the annual JPMorgan health-care conference extravaganza.”

The Nasdaq Composite surged 2.2% on Monday, bolstered by gains from members of the “Magnificent Seven,” including Nvidia, Amazon, Alphabet and Apple. Nvidia’s stock popped after the semiconductor giant unveiled generative artificial intelligence for personal computers. Apple saw a boost after analysts from JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley released optimistic notes on the company.

Despite strong innovative potential in tech and health care, Cramer emphasized that there is a significant valuation disparity between the two. He cited promising ventures from a number of health-care giants, including Walgreens, Bristol-Myers and Eli Lilly.

According to Cramer, health-care companies can yield bigger percentage gains than tech companies, for which investors should be looking. He also pointed out the large number of multibillion-dollar biopharma acquisitions announced at the end of 2023, saying investors should be on the lookout for more industry mergers.

“Don’t forget that what we care about is percentage gains, not incremental gains,” he said. “And I think we can find bigger percentage gains in health care, especially if we identify the next takeover targets.”

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Disclaimer The CNBC Investing Club Charitable Trust holds shares of Apple,