Everything Jim Cramer said on ‘Mad Money,’ including HP and Xerox bid, CVS CEO, Uber versus Lyft

CNBC’s Jim Cramer explains why Xerox’s reported bid for HP will not materialize, while also giving his thoughts on the benefits of mergers and acquisitions. The “Mad Money” host also talks with CVS’ CEO on the health-care giants’ impressive quarter and his reflections on teen vaping. Later on, Cramer explains why Lyft’s stock is worth buying instead of rival Uber and checks in with First Horizon’s CEO about the regional bank’s recent merger.

There is no way for Xerox to actually complete a reported deal to buy HP, CNBC’s Jim Cramer argued Wednesday.

That doesn’t mean the two companies coming together is a bad idea, Cramer said, but Xerox’s cash-and-stock offer would likely not cut it.

“In its current configuration, there’s really no way Xerox can pull this off,” the “Mad Money” host said.

CVS Health President and CEO Larry Merlo said that he worries about the rise in teen tobacco use amid the popularity of vaping products such as e-cigarettes.

Public health officials are seeing teen tobacco use “go the wrong way,” Merlo said in an interview with Cramer. “We’ve got to get our arms around that issue and reverse that trend.”

Cramer reversed course on Wednesday and issued a buy call on the stock of Lyft.

Lyft, coming off an August lockup expiration, may have put in a bottom at $37.07 a share in October, he said, adding that the stock is attractive after the company saw two straight positive quarterly results.

“That’s why I think Lyft is finally worth buying here,” the host said.

As for the ride-hailing app’s chief rival, shares of Uber are still hands off in Cramer’s eyes. He’s “pessimistic” about the multi-service platform’s prospects.

First Horizon National Corp CEO Bryan Jordan discussed the regional bank’s recent merger with IberiaBank Corp, which was announced on Monday.

News of the merger helped propel shares of Memphis-based First Horizon to a 52-week high of $17.42 this week.

The move “creates a real southern powerhouse,” Jordan said.

The new entity, under the name First Horizon, will create one of the biggest banks across the southeastern United States, with around $75 billion in assets and branches in 11 states.

HubSpot, a cloud-based digital marketing company, may have posted positive earnings for its most recent quarter, but Cramer said that’s not enough to buy its stock. That is especially true, he said, after management expressed some disappointment on the earnings call.

“At the end of the day, we have a glut of cloud-based software stocks like HubSpot and that makes them all tough to own,” he said. “After that quarter, who needs it? Definitely not you and your portfolio.” 

In the lightning round, Cramer said Microsoft‘s stock remains a buy, but he wasn’t so optimistic on the stocks of Aurora Cannabis and Kraft Heinz. He did not recommend owning them.

The host was positive on the stock of Humana, attributing that call to what he views as strength among the moderates in the Democratic primary.