Apple stock jumps on Trump's tariff exemptions. How Jim Cramer says to play it

Published Mon, Apr 14 20253:12 PM EDT

Jim Cramer says it is time to act on Apple 's two-day rally after President Donald Trump threw American tech firms a trade tariff lifeline. Shares of the iPhone maker rose 4% on Monday — back over a $3 trillion market cap — after guidance went out late Friday that Trump exempted smartphones, computers, and other electronics from his steep "reciprocal" tariffs. That edict included most of the 145% levies on Chinese imports. The 20% fentanyl-related tariff that Trump put on China will remain. Club stock Apple rose 4% during Friday's regular session. "Sell some. Keep a lot," Jim said on Monday's Morning Meeting. "Have some optionality here." Jim was amplifying what he wrote in his Sunday column that it would be prudent to trim our Apple position "into strength" on Monday. We would have made that small sale for the Club if not restricted. We last trimmed Apple during morning trading on Dec. 26, the day of its last record-high close, when the position was getting too big in the portfolio after a strong 2024. While still down 18% in 2025, Apple did turn in a weekly gain following Wednesday's 15% rally on Trump holding these "reciprocal" tariffs at 10% for 90 days while turning up the heat on China. "I am adamant we are too big" on Apple, Jim said Monday. He emphasized that taking some profits now while the stock is getting a bounce makes sense and protects against further downside. Jim is worried that Apple's rally may be short-lived, given the number of trade policy changes the president has made in the past two weeks. Case in point: Trump and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick signaled on Sunday that the electronics exemptions might be temporary. "Trim some Apple potentially into strength, just to take some chips off the table after a big rebound off the bottom," Jeff Marks, the Investing Club's director of portfolio analysis, said Monday. Apple has gained nearly 20% since its 2025 low of $172 on April 8. The stock, however, was still more than 20% below its December record-high close of $259. AAPL YTD mountain Apple (AAPL) year-to-date performance While Apple has tried to show the Trump administration that it's prioritizing investments in the United States, it doesn't look like it has been enough. The company said in February that it plans to pour $500 billion within the next four years into the U.S. But we think management will need to make more serious strides to get Trump off its back. "There's a certain sense in the White House that Apple hasn't really spent as much from the last time [the company] said it would do in America," Jim said Monday during "Squawk on the Street. "That's because these new plans are not shovel-ready," Jim added. Perhaps, Apple should take a page out of Club holding Nvidia 's playbook. On Monday, Nvidia unveiled plans to build some of its AI supercomputers entirely in the United States. The company forecasted that it will produce up to $500 billion of artificial intelligence infrastructure in the country as well within the next four years. In fact, Nvidia also said its Blackwell AI chips have started production in Phoenix at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing plants. Overall, it's clear to us that Apple is not out of the woods yet. It needs to find a solution quickly because its exposure to China is massive. The company manufactures the majority of its products in China, which is also Apple's second-largest market by sales. This is still the case even as management tries to diversify its revenue and supply chain by expanding into emerging economies like India and Vietnam. However, those countries will be subject to much higher so-called reciprocal tariffs in less than 90 days, barring any trade deals. Corners of Wall Street echoed our concerns about Apple's rally too. JPMorgan analysts lowered their price target to $245 from $270 Monday, arguing that while the exemptions announced late Friday will bolster sentiment in the near term, there are still some key concerns regarding the stock. "Exemptions are a relief, but complete relief might be temporary," the analysts, who reiterated their buy-equivalent rating on shares, said. Additionally, they said that mounting economic uncertainty from an all-out global trade war can weigh on iPhone sales regardless. "Pullback in consumer spending on account of the slower macro is likely to influence revenues despite the exemptions driving more confidence in gross margin sustainability," the analysts wrote in their Monday note to clients. To be sure, not everyone on the Street was hesitant about the stock. On Sunday, Apple shares were upgraded at KeyBanc to a hold-equivalent rating from a sell. The analysts described the news as "probably the best case scenario we can think of for AAPL, which makes it unlikely that our prior downside PT would be achieved, and takes a big risk off the table." (Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust is long AAPL, NVDA. See here for a full list of the stocks.) 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.

The Apple Fifth Avenue store in New York, U.S., on Monday, Feb. 24, 2025.

Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Jim Cramer says it is time to act on Apple's two-day rally after President Donald Trump threw American tech firms a trade tariff lifeline.