Friends, im just trying to make you a little money. My job is not just to entertain, but im trying to coach you about this market, educate. Call me at 1800743cnbc. You know what . We always spend way too much time worrying, fretting about what could occur. And not nearly enough time thinking about what didnt occur. What didnt go wrong. Ive pondered this positive observation all day. The dow ultimately diving 99 points, s p giving up. 76 and the nasdaq declining. 33 . Because, well, this might hold the key to why we have come up so far in recent weeks, didnt see it today, though, and why we may be in better shape than we realize despite todays action. Yes, this stock market could do well over the next few months, even if the two sides in washington cant rise above politics and come up with a reasonable budget that has both spending cuts and tax increases as seems to be the case right now after the president s discouraging press conference, which suggested that no deals imminent. And the white house is quietly signaling that talks have regressed. What do i mean about our failure to revisit what didnt happen, what didnt go wrong and the impact on the market . Well, lets start with todays incredible news about General Motors buying 5. 5 billion worth of stock from the u. S. Governments t. A. R. P. Program. And it was at a price 2 above where gm traded yesterday. Thats right. We, the people, got a better deal than we couldve ever hoped for just the day before. Gm most likely would have been liquidated, putting more than a Million People out of work, if the federal government hadnt bailed it out. Nobody likes a bailout. People dont like to use the phrase bailout and the government isnt going to be made whole in this investment. Im saying that pointblank. Thats because its so gigantic. The simple fact is also not only does gm exist, but it was capable of throwing off 5. 5 billion to repay some of the t. A. R. P. Investment. This thing was at deaths door, now its thriving, just like aig which also shouldnt have come back, but it did. Those are two 2012 Success Stories that explain how robust Corporate America really is and how unheralded that development is. What else . How about that the United States is now producing more oil than any other time in the last 17 years and producing enough to make along with canada and mexico our continent selfsufficient . Plus if we were ever to harness our bountiful reserves of natural gas as a surface fuel, surface vehicles, we would become nationally selfsufficient. Can you imagine what that could do . The ability to put millions to work to move this stuff to where it needs to be, pipelines, drilling, or to make our nation a better, cheaper, safer place to build a business and ultimately lower the price of gasoline, at least in some areas. This wasnt supposed to happen. As big a story as this was in 2012, you know what . Its going to be much bigger in 2013 as we hear about the new plants and factories we built here to take advantage of a relatively inexpensive oil and our incredibly cheap nat gas. How about the state of our companies Balance Sheets . Again, not talked about enough. Hallelujah werent we supposed to be having a serious slowdown, one that would normally be cutting into our companies liquidity . In fact, the opposites occurring. As ill talk about later in the show with the tremendous resurgence in oracle. The coffers are brimming everywhere and the bountiful lower Interest Rates courtesy of the Federal Reserve have allowed companies to refinance at amazing rates just like you can at home. Theyre doing it too. Do you know in all of my 32 years of analyzing companies, ive never seen them in more amazing shape, better shape than they are right now. Companies like whole foods, which you will hear from later in the show when the coceo visits the set. Returning cash to shareholders, brimming with cash. Its breathtaking, this undercurrent as my colleague david faber said today on squawk on the street, we just dont talk enough about it. And ive got to tell you, thats got to change in 2013. Then theres europe. Today, just today, i am wearing a tie that commemorates a brilliant strategy. One which works so amazingly that im still dazzled by it. Whats happening on this tie . Its a man, a man in a suit kicking a can down the road. You see, while the europeans were kicking the can, they gave themselves time to develop a plan to allow governments and banks to raise capital and fix their respective Balance Sheets at lower levels than anyone thought possible. Coming into the year, you know what my number one worry was . We believe that every time italy and spain would have to raise money, go to the debt markets, do those deals, Interest Rates would shoot through the roof, bankrupting all involved, sovereign countries, companies, banks. Instead, by letting cooler heads prevail through can kicking, smart private sector investors kicked the tires, not the cans, and they bought the debt. Hit home runs every time they did. As rates came down hard, courtesy of central Bank Backstops that really did work. The europeans realized if they stopped the can kicking game cold like so many investors claimed they had to do, well, europe would go into severe depression. They didnt want that kind of super austerity, their leaders bought time by kicking the can and thats what was most needed, time. They bought time. How well did it work . Considering rates are not only not dramatically higher, theyre dramatically lower, and the euro right now, strongest currency in the world. Hmm, i thought the euro was supposed to vanish by this time with the germans printing deutschmarks in secret cellars around the country. I thought greece was supposed to be kicked out of the union. Instead, my advice, do what my Charitable Trust did today, buy european stocks. You know where else theres much more to come . Yep, oh boy was this one a hated one coming into this year. Yeah, you know what im talking about, china. How about that economy over there . After pausing because the government was busy whipping inflation, now, thank you, late gerald ford, now its coming on strong. I think growth in chinas accelerating. The stock market there might be the most undervalued in the world. The stock market entirely could be undervalued. How many short sellers told you to do the opposite and sell that market . After the steamroller the chinese stock market has been of late, what exactly are the short sellers saying now . I dont know, im not hearing them clearly. Im not listening. Im not, no, im not hearing. Europe and china both were supposed to slip into oblivion in 2012. That was the easiest story, everybody wrote it. Turns out to be two fabulous places to invest. How about this Housing Market . Most common worry, the dreaded shadow inventory. Oh, the shadow inventory. The house of pain. So many banks and so many homes on the books they could never recover. Wasnt that the narrative . Now, where are we . The shadow inventory turned out to be illusory. The banks that were thought to be a ton of shadow inventory in the books, i hope they have some because theyve been the hottest stocks around. Especially bank of america, up more than 100 for the year, not shabby. The story of 2013, looming housing shortage. So many Home Builders disappeared during that last downturn that the remaining ones cant keep up with the demand, prices are going higher everywhere. The best investment may be for me to tell you to go buy a house before the affordability goes away. Certainly lock in that low rate. With employment not growing much, the consumer was supposed to be strapped and nervous in 2012. Instead, last time we got figures from the Federal Reserve showing that Household Debt as a percentage of disposable income, 17year low while spending on peoples homes have been the strongest story out there. So theyre spending and then theyre not borrowing. You see, thats called nirvana, 94, thats what happened in 1994. We came in with a glut in every kind of structure. Too many shopping centers. Now weve got a shortage. Pretty much in every category. As you know from the parade of Real Estate Investment trust executives, i have them on the show because i need to know this stuff. What an amazing change. One that makes the likes of whole foods struggle for good partials to build on. How about the litany of companies that were supposed to wither away or disappear in 2012 while the smart guys told us . Netflix, wasnt that in a weird horrible debt spiral . But now, ever since doing a deal with disney, its been about the hottest stock out there. I didnt think that deal would move it. It has. Banks were supposed to be laid to waste by regulation, i hope you bought some. Including one i think could go much higher, banco santander, which at one point today traded up 8. Hey, this thing was at 4 in july heres the bottom line, we fret about issues with abundance. But when those concerns are solved, we never seem to ponder how they were solved and what a terrific break it was they got solved for the stock market. My suggestion going into 2013, be skeptical, be wary, but dont be gloomy. And certainly dont be paralyzed by worry or fear. Instead, look at all the things that went right when they were supposed to be catastrophic and respect the fact those who panicked or were too cynical, too corroded, lost out and lost out big as the end of 2012 now dawns upon us. Brad in washington, brad . Caller hey, jim, Merry Christmas booyah from kirkland, washington. Kirkland, hey, i like kirkland brand from costco. Caller yes, indeed. Well, i had a question about another Pacific Northwest company, gbx, greenbrier. I think the stock is inexpensive. I dont know whether i dont know who comes back, but ive got to tell you, i do a lot of work with the railroads and we need a lot of cars. I think this is a good buy. Its not going to be, look, if you want a rail, i like ksu. Remember that . Someone downgraded it the other day. I think that was wrong. How about chris in my old home state of pennsylvania, chris . Caller booyah from scranton, pennsylvania. Whats going on . Caller not much, not much. I wanted to know what you think about Lockheed Martin. I saw today the pentagon agreed to buy 30 of their s35s. But the stocks down a little bit. I wanted to know what your take was all right. Chris, this isnt dunder mifflin, its a Great American company. Its only a dollar off the highs, so i think Lockheed Martin with the good yield and so many worried about the fiscal cliff, i think it sees par which is gibberish for 100. Things are better off than theyre supposed to be. Of course the bears are never happy. What are you going to do . Give them some abilify, xanax . What works for them . I dont know, i dont think anything does. Anyway, i want you to be skeptical going into 2013. I want you to be very careful. But i dont want you to be paralyzed with worry and i certainly want you to be opportunistic. Mad money will be right back. Coming up supermarket sweep. Tonight, cramers going food shopping. First up, you dont need to be on wall street to spot investing ideas. The next hot stock could be hiding in your grocery aisle. Jims slicing through the facts to see if it could deliver hearty returns. Then, its been one of the streets greatest growth stories. Whole foods market planted the seeds for profit when they introduced americans to healthier food and has been reaping the rewards since. But as competition closes in, can it continue its climb . Cramer has the exclusive with its ceo to find out. All coming up on mad money. Dont miss a secon mad money. Follow jimcramer on twitter. Have a question . Tweet cramer, madtweets. Send jim an email to madmoney cnbc. Com or give us a call at 1800743cnbc. Miss something . Head to madmoney. Cnbc. Com. Hey did you know that honey nut cheerios has oats that can help lower cholesterol . And it tastes good . Sure does wow. Its the honey, it makes it taste so. Well, would you look at the time. Whats the rush . Be happy. Be healthy. You know, from our 4,000 television commercials. Yep, there i am with flo. Hoohoo watch it [chuckles] anyhoo, 3 Million People switched to me last year, saving an average of 475. [sigh] it feels good to help people save. With great discounts like safe driver, multicar, and multipolicy. So call me today. Youll be glad you did. Cannonbox [splash ] for the last couple of years, one of our favorite themes on mad money has been the idea is that breaking up is easy to do. Ive relentlessly pushed the notion that companies can unlock value simply by splitting themselves up into smaller more easily understood entities, more edible. Now that the year is coming to an end, its time to see if the breakup thesis still holds major money. In the last two years ive recommended 13 different breakup stories. Marathon, conoco, covidien, fortune brands, sarah lee, abbott labs, news corp. , mead, westvaco, post, mcgrawhill, and kraft foods. Theyre up 13 from when i recommended them and outperformed the s p 500 by nearly 5 . So, yes, the evidence that these breakup plays work as a way to beat the market and beat the market handily, its in. 5 is a lot when youre a portfolio manager, okay. Now covidien and mcgrawhill have been the best performers in the group. Covidien we had the management on, splitting off the pharmaceutical division in the middle of the next year. Up 34 since i recommended it in december of 2011. Mcgrawhill up since i recommended it in may, shortly after the Company Announced they would break up, one focusing on education, one on finance. I still like both stocks, but no need to chase. Youll get a better chance to buy them if you wait for some weakness. Look, like a day like today, the president speaks, market gets hammered, thats when you think about buying these. Out of the 13 breakup plays i highlighted, 12 of them managed to outperform the s p, thats pretty incredible. But there was one laggard and thats the stock i want to talk about tonight, because i owe that to you. Okay. And the stock is hillshire brands, hsh, its the old sarah lee, sle meat division. I recommended sarah lee as a breakup play back on april 12th. Couple months later, the company did exactly what i told you it would do, split itself into two different businesses. Sarah lee spun off the european coffee and tea business under the name de master blender 1753. Master blaster, master blenders, whatever, and the remaining company which mainly focused on packaged meats became the new hillshire brands. You know these big brands, who doesnt like sarah lee, right . Jimmy dean, jimmy dean. Ballpark franks, chef pierre. State fair, among others. The idea that hillshire would be the Slower Growth value play and the wake of the breakup, the stock pays a yield, i think increased down the line. Now, right when sarah lee broke itself up, they paid you a 3 per share special dividend and that was very nice, particularly for low tax rates, right . But since the rump of sarah lee became hillshire brands, performance hasnt been particularly impressive. Since my recommendation, hillshires down about a percent, s p up 3. 8 over that same period. Unacceptable. What went wrong here . Why hasnt hillshire roared like the other breakup stories . Well, first of all, we never expected this one to make a ton of money immediately, not overnight. Hillshire brands was always going to be a slowgrowth company, thats more about margin improvement and increasing revenues like con agra and general mills. Hillshire was in dire need of a turnaround going back to before the breakup. Its brands have been losing market share at the old sarah lee and so far the company is trying to fix the preexisting problems. Does that mean hillshires a failure . I dont think so. My view is that hillshire just needs more time and that is not an excuse. Im not just alibiing for it. I really believe this. This is a turn around story that was always going to take years. Right now hillshires reinvesting in the business in order to take share in the future. Hillshire ceo shawn conley, he is going to boost the companys revenues by 4 to 5 along with a 2 to 3 increase in overall individual volumes. Meanwhile, he plans to eliminate 100 million expenses over the same time period. You want to be along for this ride, something you can do by buying the stock into this weakness. This is like all those companies that restructured then reaped the benefits later by making you wish you bought them while the restructuring was going on. Companies coming out with new, innovative products. That was such a great reinvention. Well, theyre reinventing, coming out with household name brands like ballpark and jimmy dean. Theyve got ballpark slider sandwiches, mexican flavor corn dog. Beyond that, hillshire plans to revamp the packaging, freshen up the look a little in the aisles, make the merchandise more attractive, less humdrum, less old fashioned. Boosting marketing support for the brands while the advertising guys come up with Marketing Campaigns to promote them. These are all the elements of the turn. And i believe they could ultimately lead to an acceleration of hillshires business. How about this . Over the next three years, patience. The fact is, hillshires still cleaning up its operations. The breakup gave them space to restructure. But that restructuring is going to take time. Just yesterday, the Company Announced its selling its australian subsidiary to mccain foods for 85 million. Hillshire tries to make itself into a more focused business. But even though i believe in the longterm story here, the big worries about hillshire have more to do with what will happen over the next 12 months or so. People worried about commodity costs. Roughly 60 of hillshires cost of goods sold is commodity driven with 42 coming from meats, meat, 9 from packaging and freight, another 9 , other foods and baked goods inputs. The issue here is that this year more farmers brought animals to market because of the drought. So some people were worried there might be a shortage of hogs come next year. This is hot links. Where be the hogs . Dramatically drive up the price of kielbasa and all these others. Me, i think thats too far out to be concerned, frankly. I dont think its going to happen. In a year, hillshire