Jim Cramer Says the AI Trade Isn't Dead - Here Are the Stocks Proving It

Jim Cramer told Mad Money viewers on September 2, 2026, that investors are not abandoning AI stocks but are "dumping their expensive stocks and swapping into cheaper ones" as bond yields climb.

MongoDB fell 13% despite beating estimates at roughly 52 times forward earnings, while Dell rallied 16% at roughly 16 times. Recognizing which AI stocks the market rewards and which it punishes for valuation alone is among the most practical signs of financial success in this rotation, and this is the comparison Cramer built his case around.

Dell posted a record $46.97 billion in revenue and $60.9 billion in AI orders

Dell Technologies Inc. (NYSE:DELL) reported fiscal Q2 2027 results on September 1, 2026, exceeding estimates by a wide margin, 24/7 Wall St. confirmed.

• Revenue of $46.97 billion, up 58% year over year.
• Non-GAAP EPS of $7.04 versus the $4.90 consensus estimate.
• Record AI orders of $60.9 billion, with an AI backlog of $95 billion.
• Full-year revenue guidance raised to $192 billion from $167 billion.

COO Jeff Clarke said, "IT environments have shifted from cost centers to value drivers," framing the raised outlook as structural demand. Dell shares have surged approximately 295% year-to-date and gained another 20% in the past month.

MongoDB fell 13.5% after beating revenue and earnings estimates

MongoDB Inc. (NASDAQ:MDB) reported fiscal Q2 2027 revenue of $771.8 million, up 30% year over year and above the $734.4 million estimate, with adjusted EPS of $1.90 versus the $1.61 consensus, Yahoo Finance reported. The company raised full-year 2027 guidance to between $2.99 billion and $3.03 billion, from a consensus estimate of $2.96 billion.

Shares dropped 13.5% on September 2 to $375.40 despite the beat, as Atlas cloud growth of 28.9% fell short of the roughly 30% pace investors had expected, according to the same Yahoo Finance analysis. Morgan Stanley analysts identified the Atlas result as the key issue in an otherwise strong report.

Cramer's argument links the two reactions to a single variable

Cramer pointed to valuation as the factor separating Dell's 16% rally from MongoDB's 13% drop. Dell trades at roughly 16 times forward earnings. MongoDB trades at roughly 52 times. Both companies beat estimates, but the market rewarded the cheaper stock and punished the expensive one.

Cramer said on Mad Money that "many of the data center plays have high multiples, but the ones that don't, like Dell, are doing fine," CNBC confirmed. The implication for your portfolio is that owning AI stocks at the right price matters as much as owning the right AI stocks.

Nvidia at 17 times forward earnings anchors Cramer's valuation thesis

Cramer cited Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) as further proof that the AI trade remains alive, noting it trades at roughly 17 times expected earnings over the next 12 months despite sitting at the center of the AI boom, CNBC reported. Nvidia's revenue is up 106% year over year, yet it trades at a lower forward multiple than many slower-growing technology stocks, illustrating the repricing Cramer described.

Nvidia's forward P/E of 17 compares with MongoDB's 52 and even trails Dell's 16 only slightly. For you as an investor, Cramer's point is that the most obvious AI beneficiary also happens to be one of the cheapest ways to own the trend on a forward-earnings basis.

Rising bond yields are accelerating the rotation from expensive to cheap

Cramer linked the repricing to rising bond yields, which increase the discount rate investors apply to future earnings. Stocks priced at high multiples are more sensitive to yield increases because a larger share of their valuation depends on earnings years into the future.

Dell and Nvidia derive most of their value from near-term earnings, which makes them less sensitive to rising yields. MongoDB's valuation embeds years of growth assumptions, which means rising rates compress its multiple even when the business executes well. Your portfolio's exposure to yield-sensitive growth stocks may matter more than your exposure to AI itself.

What Cramer's framework means for how you evaluate AI stocks

Cramer's thesis does not say you should sell all AI stocks. The argument is that the market is sorting AI names into two categories. Stocks with strong results and reasonable valuations are being bought. Stocks with strong results and elevated valuations are being sold. The performance gap between Dell and MongoDB illustrates that sorting is happening in real time.

You may want to screen your AI holdings for forward P/E multiples and compare them to the growth rates each company is delivering. A stock growing 30% at 52 times earnings is priced differently than a stock growing 58% at 16 times, and the market is now enforcing that distinction through the price action itself.

Risks of following the cheap-AI trade blindly

Dell's 295% year-to-date rally shifts the question from whether AI server demand is real to how much opportunity is already in the share price, 24/7 Wall St. noted. Free cash flow of $986 million was a step down from the prior year even as reported earnings jumped, a divergence worth monitoring.

MongoDB's drop may also represent an opportunity rather than a warning. A company growing revenue 30% with 74% gross margins and a record backlog may deserve a premium multiple, and the 13% selloff could look like a gift if Atlas growth reaccelerates. Cheap and expensive are relative, and your risk tolerance determines where the right entry point sits.

Bottom line

Cramer's framework is arguing that the AI trade is not dying. Capital is moving from expensive AI stocks to cheaper ones with comparable or better growth. Dell's 16 times earnings rallied 16% after beating estimates. MongoDB at 52 times fell 13% after a similar beat. Nvidia remains one of the cheapest large-cap ways to own it.

Applying that valuation filter before you start investing additional capital in any AI name is the practical takeaway from this comparison. Cramer's point is that the market has stopped rewarding growth alone and now demands growth at a reasonable price, and your AI allocation should reflect that shift rather than the conviction that carried the trade through 2024 and 2025.

This article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered investment advice.

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