My top 10 things to watch Monday, March 2 1. Dow futures are down about 500 points, and global oil benchmark Brent crude is spiking more than 8% following the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran over the weekend. The stock market can accept a short war with a limited oil price impact. Not a long one where oil runs hot. 2. Right now, the market sees nothing good, no bright side, to the slaying of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei because the Islamic Revolutionary Guard stays in place. But, perhaps, it will eventually be more tame when it comes to international conflict. 3. Oil tankers are being rerouted to avoid the crucial Strait of Hormuz , and the fear is sustained supply disruptions from the conflict. Citigroup raised its price target on a bunch of energy names including Chevron and Exxon . In my Sunday column for Investing Club subscribers , I explained how I would approach oil stocks and the broader market in this fraught moment. 4. Piper Sandler upgraded Club name CrowdStrike to buy from hold ahead of earnings tomorrow night. The cybersecurity provider’s report is one of the five big things on our radar this week. Fears about AI disruption for cyber names is overblown, but I recognize CrowdStrike’s lofty price-to-earnings multiple does it no favors. 5. Another important theme in my Sunday column : Wall Street’s growing concerns around the private credit industry. A feature on the co-CEOs of Blue Owl Capital’s in The Wall Street Journal over the weekend will not help the company withstand the flow of capital out of funds. Already down 29% year to date, Blue Owl shares are off another 2% this morning. 6. Barclays cut its price targets on the alternative asset managers, but still kept buy ratings on KKR , Ares Management and Apollo Global . It reiterated its hold rating on Blackstone . While analysts say it’s too early to know where there is true portfolio risk, the flows out of investment vehicles known as BDCs can’t be ignored. 7. Nvidia plans to unveil a new “inference” processor designed to help OpenAI and other customers run their AI systems more efficiently, The Wall Street Journal reported . It will use technology that Club name Nvidia licensed from startup Groq for $20 billion late last year. Elsewhere, Nvidia is the top semiconductor pick at Morgan Stanley again, replacing Micron . 8. JPMorgan upgraded Netflix to buy from hold, as the bank resumed coverage following a period of restriction. With Netflix dropping its pursuit of Warner Bros Discovery, analysts believe the streaming giant is still a healthy organic growth story, citing its “under-monetized” ad business and strong content. They also like that Netflix is neither shelling out billions in AI capex, nor being hurt by disruption risk. 9. Nucor’s price target at Wells Fargo was increased to $194 from $184. Analysts kept a buy rating on shares and argued higher steel prices due to the Trump administration’s tariffs will be a catalyst for the stock. The Street views the American steel producer as a quality cyclical name that is protected by the president. 10. Goldman Sachs downgraded Novo Nordisk to a hold from buy and lowered the drugmaker’s PT to $41 from $63. Goldman pointed to the “disappointing” results in a recent trial for Novo Nordisk’s CagriSema, its next-gen obesity shot, which failed to outperform rival Eli Lilly’s Zepbound . The Club owns and loves Eli Lilly . Sign up for my Top 10 Morning Thoughts on the Market email newsletter for free (See here for a full list of the stocks at 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.
Jim Cramer’s top 10 things to watch in the stock market Monday
Mar 2, 2026
