Palantir (PLTR) ends session in red as Hegseth memo calls for sharp spending cut. (00:23) Airbus (EADSF) to deliver more planes this year, Spirit Aero (SPR) hurdles delay A350 freighter. (01:10) Amazon (AMZN) gives up on its Chime communications service. (02:31)Episode transcripts seekingalpha.com/wsb.Show links: Biggest stock movers Thursday: PLTR, CVNA, and moreBeyond Meat in talks with lenders to help shore up its liquidity - BloombergFederal Reserve officials consider trade, immigration impacts: FOMC minutesCarbon capture would boost U.S. energy independence, Occidental CEO saysSign up for our daily newsletter here and for full access to analyst ratings, stock quant scores, dividend grades, subscribe to Seeking Alpha Premium at seekingalpha.com/subscriptions.
Chapter 1: Why did Palantir's stock drop after the defense cut memo?
Welcome to Seeking Alpha's Wall Street Breakfast, where we cover the top news for investors every morning. Good morning. Today is Thursday, February 20th. I'm Julie Morgan. Palantir drops as the Pentagon sets priorities. Airbus aims high, and Amazon is pulling the plug on one of its services. Palantir Technologies fell more than 10% on Wednesday and is down nearly 2% in pre-market action.
Chapter 2: What are the implications of the proposed defense budget cuts?
This after a memo obtained by the Washington Post from the Defense Secretary called for an 8% cut to the defense budget over each of the next five years. The news outlet added that the proposed cuts are required to be drawn up by February 24th. There are 17 categories that are said to be exempted from the cuts, including security at the southern U.S. border, the modernization of the U.S.
nuclear weapon arsenal and missile defense, one-way attack drones, and other areas. News of the potential cuts were first reported over the weekend. Palantir did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Seeking Alpha.
Chapter 3: How is Airbus planning to overcome supply chain challenges?
Airbus is expecting to deliver more planes in 2025 compared to a year ago, even as it faces continued supply chain challenges and broader uncertainty in light of global trade tensions. The European aircraft maker expects to deliver around 820 commercial planes this year, slightly lower than the consensus estimate of 824 jets, but higher than 766 deliveries in 2024.
The outlook assumes no additional disruptions to global trade, air traffic, the supply chain, and Airbus' internal operations. It also excludes the impact of potential new tariffs on the company's business. Airbus pushed the entry into service date for the A350 freighter variant to the second half of 2027, from its earlier target of 2026.
Chapter 4: What are Airbus' delivery and production targets for the upcoming years?
The company continues to target a monthly production rate of 12 A350s in 2028, and 14 A220s in 2026. The A320 family continues to ramp up towards a rate of 75 aircraft per month in 2027, while monthly A330 production is stabilizing at around a rate of four. The planemaker is taking over some parts of Spirit Aerosystems' business, while rival Boeing is acquiring the majority of that business.
Chapter 5: Why is Amazon discontinuing its Chime communication service?
Amazon is giving up on its Chime communication service. The company announced on Wednesday that it is withdrawing support for the Amazon Chime service next year and will stop accepting new customers today.
Organizations with at least one Amazon Chime team or an enterprise account can continue to use Amazon Chime and business calling features until February 20th of 2026, when all support for the service will end.
Amazon Chime was officially announced on February 13th of 2017 and positioned itself as a competitor to established services like Skype for Business, Cisco WebEx, Google Hangouts, and LogMeIn's GoToMeeting. Now for a look at what's trending at this early hour on Seeking Alpha. Beyond Meat is in talks with lenders, according to Bloomberg, to help shore up its liquidity.
We also have a look at the FOMC Minutes. Federal Reserve officials consider trade and immigration impacts. An Occidental CEO says carbon capture would boost U.S. energy independence. On our Catalyst Watch for the Day, the Cagney Conference will include presentations from Procter & Gamble, U.S. Foods, Diageo, and Clorox. Walmart will hold its earnings conference call.
The retail giant's business updates have impacted shares of Target, Costco, Dollar General, Dollar Tree, and Kroger in the past. Major suppliers with a strong post-earnings trading correlation with Walmart include Reynolds Consumer Products, Treehouse Foods, and Flower Foods. Mobileye Global will present at the Barclays Industrial Select Conference.
Boeing CEO will also speak at that same conference. And Visa will hold its Investor Day event. Now for a look at the markets today ahead of the opening bell. Dow S&P and Nasdaq futures are in the red. Crude oil is up 0.2% at $72 a barrel. Bitcoin is up 1% at $97,000. In the world markets, the FTSE 100 is down 0.3% and the DAX is up 0.3%.
Carvana is on our list of the biggest movers of the day pre-market. Carvana is down 8.5% despite a strong Q4 performance, which saw the company beat top and bottom line estimates, increased car sales, and improved profit per vehicle. On today's economic calendar, we have lots of Fed speak.
At 9.35 a.m., the Fed's Austin Goolsbee will participate in a moderated question and answer session before an event in Chicago. At 12.05 p.m., the Fed's Alberto Musalem will speak and participate in a moderated conversation on the U.S. economy and monetary policy before the Economic Club of New York.
At 2.30 p.m., the Fed's Michael Barr will speak on supervision and regulation at Georgetown University's Law Center. And at 5 p.m., the Fed's Adriana Kugler will speak on navigating inflation waves while riding on the Phillips curve before the 2025 Whittington Lecture event hosted by Georgetown University. That's it for today's Wall Street Breakfast. Thanks for listening.
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