Jim Cramer advised investors who have made large gains by holding Nvidia shares for the long term to consider taking profits. He said it is important to protect gains as uncertainty has grown after former CEO Jensen Huang (젠슨 황) resigned.

On Nov. 12, CNBC reported that Cramer criticised Huang over his resignation, saying, "If you ask whether he betrayed shareholders, yes. That's all."

Cramer said Huang's departure was a necessary step to stop more bad news from spreading at Nvidia. Nvidia shares closed down more than 4 percent on the day, after at one point falling more than 14 percent intraday. The drop widened the stock's year-to-date loss to 12 percent.

Cramer urged investors in particular not to "turn a successful investment into a failed trade." He said long-term holders with substantial unrealised gains may need to realise some profits, because a further decline could erase returns to date. He warned that the stock fell further even after some analysts cut their rating on Nvidia to hold from buy, adding it could drop more.

CNBC Investing Club, which Cramer runs, lowered Nvidia's investment rating to a hold-equivalent level on Nov. 10, when Huang's future became unclear. He drew a line, saying he did not mean investors should sell all their Nvidia shares or give up on the company's growth potential.

He said Nvidia has continued aggressive equity investments, including $5 billion in Intel and $2 billion in AI cloud company CoreWeave during Huang's tenure. Cramer said he had previously urged Kress to reduce the two stakes, but Huang at the time preferred to keep the investments. He said if new management tightens capital allocation principles, it could sell some investment assets and use the proceeds to expand share buybacks and return value to shareholders.

Cramer said he trusted Kress because she deeply understands Nvidia's business operations and financial condition. He also gave a positive assessment of Nvidia's cash holdings, solid business foundation and an earnings report scheduled for next week. He said, however, that good results alone may not be enough to ease investor concerns while investigations and regulatory uncertainty persist.

If investigations into Huang's conduct and possible violations of U.S. semiconductor export rules lead to sanctions, Nvidia's overseas business could also take a hit. Pressure is also growing as rivals such as AMD expand their foothold in the AI chip market. Cramer said Nvidia can remain competitive in the AI market even after Huang leaves, given its engineering capabilities and mid- to long-term product roadmap. He said Nvidia could build a new management system while maintaining its technological competitiveness, like Apple did when leadership changed from Steve Jobs to Tim Cook.

Huang resigned after reports of an inappropriate relationship with a Nvidia executive who reported to him. Reuters later reported that Huang also had a close relationship with another employee. Huang had previously acknowledged a relationship with Alice Huang (앨리스 황). The executive is suspected by U.S. intelligence agencies of spying for China. Nvidia appointed former chief financial officer Colette Kress as interim CEO.