Here’s our Club Mailbag email investingclubmailbag@cnbc.com — so you send your questions directly to Jim Cramer and his team of analysts. We can’t offer personal investing advice. We will only consider more general questions about the investment process or stocks in the portfolio or related industries. Question 1: The stocks in the Trust have astonishingly different P/Es. With this in mind, how can a price target be established for each of them? Thank you. I find the Club to be fascinating. —Marc M. Price targets are part art and part science. While the art portion can be more subjective at times, the most important thing to keep in mind when thinking about the correct multiple to put on a stock is the “comp,” meaning the thing we are comparing that stock to. The two primary comps are going to be the peer group (those companies most similar to the one in question) and the multiple investors paid in the past. What we don’t want to do is think about what the appropriate multiple should be by examining companies that don’t represent an apples-to-apples comparison. A stock’s multiple (and we like looking at the forward multiple) is calculated by dividing the current shares price by earnings estimates for the next 12 months. For example, we wouldn’t look at the multiple investors are willing to pay for Club stocks Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD) or Coterra Energy (CTRA) in an attempt to determine the correct multiple for Microsoft (MSFT). We would have to consider the multiples of Pioneer and Coterra in regard to one another (and other U.S.-based exploration and production companies) because both are U.S.-based exploration and production (E & P) companies. We would then consider whether one should or should not demand a higher or lower multiple versus the other. Based on our price targets of $259 for PXD and $30 for CTRA, the forward P/E multiple that we think represents fair value is roughly 12 times for PXD and roughly 11 times for CTRA. That’s below what investors have paid for PXD over the last five years and about in line with what they’ve paid for Coterra in that time frame. Based on our price target of $400 for MSFT, the forward P/E we think represents fair value is about 33 times. That’s several turns above the historic average, but we think it’s justified given the opportunity generative AI represents for Microsoft to charge customers more for their software to help them reduce costs, thanks to the efficiency gains these AI offerings can bring about. Like most investors, we are willing to pay more for the high-growth potential that we see in tech, whereas an oil name investment thesis is more income-oriented via dividends and stock buybacks. Once we have an idea of what these multiples are, we can begin to make adjustments based on the merits of the company in question versus what peers have going for them or what the company looked like in the past. It’s also worth watching the overall market’s multiple to see how much of a premium or how much of a bargain the stock in question may be. As of this writing, the forward P/E on the S & P 500 was just over 19 times. For further reading on how to determine an appropriate price target based on multiples, check out our commentary dedicated to the process. Question 2: If I am just starting with the Investment Club and have some money to invest, how do I achieve a balanced portfolio that mirrors the Investment Club’s? Do I just purchase stocks with a 1 rating, but then I am not balanced through all sectors? Thanks, Brian The last part of the question is exactly why our general rule of thumb, for those just getting started, is that the first $10,000 should go into a diversified index fund, such as an S & P 500 index fund. This will ensure diversification from the very start of your investing journey. From there, you are correct: start looking for 1-rated Club holdings to augment your portfolio. (That information can be found on our portfolio page .) Our “1 rating” is our way of communicating to members that in the current market landscape, a stock is a buy at current levels. Keep in mind that on any given day, there could be big price swings, so our daily commentary should take priority over our ratings as it will always be more real-time in nature. (We provided additional thoughts on how to go about the research and how to start adding names.) That said, as you add names, you will of course be altering the makeup of your portfolio in terms of sector exposure. So, be sure to remain mindful of the sector breakdown of any ETFs or index funds you already own. (Here’s a breakdown of the S & P 500’s sector weighting .) Another thing we would add: We generally advise individual investors to own no more than five to 10 stocks. That’s because it takes about one hour of homework per day, per stock to keep on top of your positions. We have Jim Cramer and two analysts and a team of reporters and editors covering the 30 some stocks in the Club portfolio. Unless you are looking for a second job, five to 10 hours per week of homework feels about right for most investors. A follow-up question that sometimes comes up is: “I own five stocks but don’t feel comfortable with any single stock being in excess of 10% of my portfolio. How do I reconcile this if I don’t want to be 50% in cash?” It’s a valid concern and to reconcile these views — wanting to be more invested but not own more names due to the time commitment and not wanting to be so heavy in cash — we would point you right back to that S & P 500 index holding. We say $10,000 as a starting point to ensure diversification from the start. That said, you can always allocate more funds to that position as a means of putting more money to work in a more passive way without feeling the need to increase individual stock exposure beyond a comfortable level. For example, you may opt to hold five individual stocks at 10% each and an S & P 500 index fund at 40%. Then your equity portfolio would be 90% invested and the rest could be cash. To be clear, this is not a recommendation on portfolio allocation, only an example of how one may use an index fund to get more money to work in a more passive way while maintaining a more actively invested portion of your portfolio. Question 3: When trimming shares to take some profits, is it typically more profitable over time, to trim the shares with a low-cost basis or a high-cost basis? Sincerely, Donna M. The concern with which lots one should sell isn’t so much about profits as it is about tax implications. The Club is a Charitable Trust and is, therefore, required to distribute all portfolio income and realized capital gains to qualified publicly supported charitable organizations. As a result, we stick to the default sales method first-in, first-out, or FIFO. This means that the oldest shares are going to be the first ones sold. That said, for most investors not trading in a tax-advantaged account, a sale is going to have some kind of tax implication based on the profits realized or the loss taken with the sales. While we can’t get into too much detail (as we cannot offer individual investing advice), remember that long-term capital gains rates on stocks owned for more than 1 year differ from short-term capital gains rates on stocks owned for less than 1 year, which are taxed as income. So, remember that if your goal is to raise cash, your concern shouldn’t be so much about which lots you can sell in order to realize more profits, it should be about which lot you can sell while paying the least in taxes. If you’ve got a position that you are up on overall but within which there are lots that are losers and your goal is to trim that position, you may even consider selling the losers in order to tax loss harvest. That’s all we can really offer up on the matter as anything beyond this would best be discussed with your accountant as they will know what is best given your own unique circumstances. (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.
Here’s our Club Mailbag email investingclubmailbag@cnbc.com — so you send your questions directly to Jim Cramer and his team of analysts. We can’t offer personal investing advice. We will only consider more general questions about the investment process or stocks in the portfolio or related industries.
Question 1: The stocks in the Trust have astonishingly different P/Es. With this in mind, how can a price target be established for each of them? Thank you. I find the Club to be fascinating. —Marc M.
Japanese equipment giant Komatsu has added a not-so-giant electric excavator to its growing lineup of battery-powered construction equipment. The new Komatsu PC20E-6 electric mini excavator promises a full day of work from a single charge.
Komatsu says the design of its latest mini excavator was informed by data sourced from more than 40,000 working days of comparably-sized diesel excavators. The company found that, in 90% of its global customers’ mini excavator deployments, these vehicles are in active use for less than 3.5 hours per day.
“This defined the target for the required, reliable working time with the excavator,” reads the Komatsu web copy. “This result makes it possible for Komatsu to offer an attractively priced machine with a performance that exactly matches the requirements.”
Keeping costs down are relatively conservative specs. Komatsu chose to power the PC20E-6 with a 23.2 kWh battery pack sending electrons to an 11 kW (~15 hp), high-torque electric motors. Not exactly super impressive on paper, but the machine has an operating weight of 2,190 kg and enough juice for up to four (4) hours of continuous operation.
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More than enough, in other words, to have completed 90% of of those 40,000 work days the company analyzed.
Getting it done
PC20E-6 electric mini excavator; via Komatsu.
If, for some reason, that four hours’ runtime isn’t enough, an on-board charging option for 230V and 3kW charging power compatible with various plug adapters is standard, with an external DC quick charger for 400V and 12 kW charging as optional. In either case, it won’t be long before the machine is back at work.
To help the later adopters sleep well about their battery-powered investments, the PC20E-6 ships with Komatsu’s E-Support maintenance program, which includes free scheduled maintenance by a Komatsu-trained technician, a 3 year/2,000 hour warranty on the machine, plus a 5 year/10,000 hour warranty on the electric driveline. The company says the battery should last 10 years.
“The Komatsu E-Support customer program is included free of charge with every market-ready electric mini excavator and offers exclusive machine support,” said Emanuele Viel, Group Manager Utility at Komatsu Europe. “The bottom line is that the risk for the end customer is significantly reduced, especially when it comes to exploring the electrification advances in the industry.”
Komatsu hasn’t released official pricing quite yet, but has revealed that the P20E-6 will begin series production this October.
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Tesla has unexpectedly terminated a contractor’s contract at Gigafactory Texas, resulting in the layoff of 82 workers who were supporting the automaker’s production at the giant factory in Austin.
MPW Industrial Services Inc., an Ohio-based industrial service provider specializing in cleaning and facility management, has issued a new WARN notice, confirming that it will lay off 82 workers in Texas due to Tesla unexpectedly ending its contract with the company.
Here are the details from the WARN notice:
State / agency: Texas Workforce Commission (TWC).
Notice date: August 27, 2025.
Employees affected: 82
Likely effective date: September 1, 2025
Context from the filing/letter: layoffs tied to an unexpected termination of a major customer contract (Tesla—Gigafactory Texas, 1 Tesla Road); positions include 61 technicians, 7 team leads, 7 supervisors, 7 managers; no bumping rights; workers not union-represented.
In April 2024, Tesla initiated waves of layoffs at the plant, resulting in the dismissal of more than 2,000 employees in Austin, Texas.
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Since then, Tesla’s sales have been in a steady decline. While the automaker is expected to have a strong quarter in the US in Q3 due to the end of the tax credit, sales are expected to decline further in Q4 and the first half of 2026.
Many industry watchers have expected Tesla to initiate further layoffs due to the situation.
Electrek’s Take
We may be seeing the beginnings of a new wave of layoffs at Tesla, as the automaker typically starts with contractors.
To be fair, Tesla could also potentially end the contract unexpectedly for other reasons, but the timing does align with the need to cut costs and staff ahead of an inevitable downturn in US EV sales.
I think it’s inevitable that we start seeing some layoffs. I think Tesla will have to slow down production in the US to avoid creating an oversupply, especially in Q4-Q1.
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First, it was e-bikes, offering an efficient, effective, and low-cost way for teens and just about everyone to zip around town, yet drawing the temper of suburban traditionalists. Now golf carts are the new public enemy number one in suburbia, at least if you ask the growing number of online groups where residents complain about these small electric vehicles “clogging” their streets.
But beyond the hand-wringing, golf carts and their more sophisticated cousins known as Neighborhood Electric Vehicles (NEVs) or Low Speed Vehicles (LSVs), are quietly becoming a popular alternative to cars for short trips around US cities and suburbs.
While most people still associate golf carts with retirement communities in Florida or slow rides across 18 holes, street-legal versions have been around for the last few decades.
But these aren’t your grandpa’s bare-bones carts, complete with a golf pencil clip. Many now come with DOT seat belts, lights, turn signals, mirrors, backup cameras, and speed limiters that allow them to operate legally on roads up to 35 mph, as long as they meet all the federal requirements for Low-Speed Vehicles (LSVs).
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That means such vehicles are legally allowed to operate like cars, trucks, bicycles, or motorcycles on the vast majority of residential streets and a surprising portion of urban grids. In other words, for grabbing groceries, school drop-offs, or cruising to a friend’s house, they’re a practical, cheaper, and far greener substitute for firing up a 5,000-pound SUV.
The Club Car Cru adds extra luxury to the concept of an LSV
Golf carts have been slowly taking off for years, but the pandemic accelerated the trend. Sales of golf carts and LSVs spiked as families looked for safe, outdoor transportation and an easy way to get around their neighborhoods. Now, in cities all over the country, the sight of parents driving their kids to school or running errands in a cart is increasingly common. In some towns, petitions have even popped up with hundreds of residents asking for local ordinances to legalize them on more streets, according to the Daily Mail.
Of course, not everyone is thrilled. There’s growing backlash against the increase in golf carts on streets, with many residents calling them a “plague” and complaining that they’re taking up space on the roads, in parking lots, or creating unsafe conditions. While rare, there have been serious accidents too, with a handful of tragic cases highlighting the dangers of mixing small, lightweight carts with full-size vehicles. Critics argue that carts lack the crash protection of cars and don’t always fall under homeowners’ insurance policies if an accident happens.
But for every critic, there’s a supporter pointing out that golf carts take cars off the road, save money on fuel, and are no more dangerous than scooters or e-bikes – modes of transport that already share the streets. And major golf cart makers have been happy to respond to the demand with boosted sales and new models. Companies like E-Z-GO, Club Car, WAEV, Kandi, and others are all rushing new models to the market as more suburban commuters discover that their next electric vehicle might just cost a fraction of what they thought it would – and come with a better breeze, too.
The GEM microcars are classic LSVs that have brought smiles to families’ faces for decades
Electrek’s Take
If I didn’t know any better, I’d say it’s like the Karens are just following me around to poo-poo on any alternative vehicle I happen to drive that week. They’ve hit all my favorites. Pretty soon, they’ll be coming for my electric tractors, too!
But seriously, this feels like déjà vu. The same arguments we’ve heard for years against e-bikes are now being recycled against golf carts: too unsafe, too disruptive, too “different” from the car-centric status quo.
But the reality is, again, quite the same as e-bikes. These are small electric vehicles that make a ton of sense and are totally street legal, at least when they’re built correctly to conform to the proper laws.
They come with a lot of the same benefits, too. They’re cheap to operate, easy to park, perfect for short trips, and they prevent larger cars from needlessly clogging residential streets. Will they ruffle feathers among the kind of folks who have had one too many frisbees land in their yard? Perhaps. But much like e-bikes, their popularity is only going one direction – up.
I leave you with a few images of perhaps my favorite of all, the Kandi Mini. The nay-sayers can pull it from my cold, dead, golf
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