The European Central Bank's attempts to stimulate Europe's economy sent markets on a wild ride Thursday morning, with investors first frantically trying to buy anything they could and then sending stocks sliding as the day wore on. Jim Cramer shared some lessons learned from this event.
"Stop being a herd animal. Don't chase. You will likely lose money, especially when you are chasing stocks for the wrong reasons," the "Mad Money" host said.
No. 1 Never chase stocks. It is not worth it. It is better to say you missed it and wait for the next downturn.
No. 2 When the market rallies, try to figure out why. Even if there is a real reason, it's worth waiting for lower prices before pulling the trigger.
No. 3 Wait for a market-wide pullback before buying. The intra-day decline was a classic buying opportunity for Cramer.
One stock that reported what Cramer referred to as a "monster" quarter on Thursday was Ulta, which reported double-digit comparable-store sales and upbeat guidance.
"Ulta will be up very big, and it is a very deserving company," he said.
Read More Cramer: Stop being a herd animal! Top 3 lessons
The strong demand coming from consumers begging for value blew Cramer away. All it takes is a company to offer something cheaper than anyone else, and it is gobbled right up.
"There is an insatiable demand for value in America," the "Mad Money" host said.
The discount stores reiterated the love of value when Dollar General (DG) delivered much better than expected same-store sales. But it was the commentary from management that was even better for Cramer, which discussed how they are working hard to find enough locations to meet the demand for more dollar stores.
The company's CEO, Todd Vasos, reiterated on the conference call that the key to its value offering is the concept of a consumer trial. Its customer cannot afford to make mistakes, so it will allow the customer to try a product first before trading up to the larger sizes of a national brand.
That was a value moment in a nutshell for Cramer. "I think that is the reality of both the consumer and the country. We simply don't hear about it much if we are well off," he said.
Given that most people on Wall Street don't have to try something before purchasing it, it explains a bit why Dollar General's earnings took analysts and money managers by surprise.
Read More Cramer: Earnings that shocked rich Wall Street
Cramer couldn't help but notice that several packaged-foods stocks have been absolutely crushing the broader averages, with Campbell Soup (CPB), General Mills (GIS) and Hormel (HRL) leaving the S&P 500 (^GSPC) in the dust this year.