Meta Platforms, Inc.

Airbus SE

The Boeing Company

Amazon.com, Inc.

SoftBank Corp.

NVIDIA Corporation

Microsoft Corporation

OpenAI is preparing a record funding round, during which it may raise over $100 billion; the company's total valuation will eventually rise to $850 billion on the back of trillion-dollar investments in AI infrastructure. Meta is returning to wearable devices and intends to release its first smartwatch as early as this year. These and other topics - in our review of key events for the morning of February 19.

Highlights for the morning: OpenAI prepares a round over $100 billion, Meta returns to smartwatches

Apple Inc.

Artificial intelligence is a threat to software vendors, but not to iPhone sales

Apple has unshackled itself from the Nasdaq. What's good for investors in the midst of the software apocalypse?

Palantir Technologies Inc.

Mizuho analyst Gregg Moskowitz upgraded shares of military and civilian AI developer Palantir from neutral to a buy recommendation, Barron's <a href="https://www.barrons.com/articles/palantir-stock-price-upgrade-buy-ai-1e7fd03b?mod=RTA">writes</a>. He also set the target price at $195, which implies a 44% upside potential relative to the last close on February 18.

"Unique in its category": Mizuho saw 44% upside potential for Palantir stock

Micron Technology, Inc.

An ETF tracking software developer stocks added 1.3% for the day

The S&amp;P 500 rose for the third day in a row. Investors are watching the Fed and the risks of war with Iran

Moderna, Inc.

Quotes have already risen 58% since the beginning of the year

A regulator in the US has had a dramatic change of heart on the new Moderna vaccine. Its shares rose 6%

The momentum has spread to the derivatives market as well

Retail investors bought back shares of software developers at a record pace on the downturn

Iran is rushing to prepare for war in case talks fail, WSJ writes

Oil up 5%: Vance says Iran unwilling to concede, admits use of force

Nebius Group N.V.

American investment company Compass Point has started covering shares of cloud provider Nebius Group, which is headed by Yandex co-founder Arkady Volozh. Compass analysts gave it a "buy" recommendation and a target price of $150, CNBC <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/18/buy-this-ai-infrastructure-stock-that-has-doubled-in-the-past-year-says-compass-point.html">writes,</a> suggesting a potential upside of 54% from the last close.

Volozh's AI company Nebius has another bull. He expects the stock to rise 54%

Robinhood Markets, Inc.

Due to fear of AI's disruptive impact, investors may funnel money into defensive stocks

The market is expecting an influx of $150 billion from tax refunds. Which stocks will benefit?

The New York Times Company

Shares of The New York Times media corporation jumped 1.1% in opening trading on Feb. 18 to an all-time high after Berkshire Hathaway <a href="https://oninvest.com/article/apple-nyt-chevron-cto-kupila-i-prodala-berkshire-v-poslednem-kvartale-baffeta">disclosed</a> its stake in the company while reporting fourth-quarter deals, the last under Warren Buffett.

NY Times shares hit record after Berkshire stake disclosure. Are they worth buying?

BAE Systems plc

Volkswagen AG

Siemens Limited

Amid capital outflows from the US, the bank is building up positions in Europe, Japan and emerging markets

JPMorgan booked gains on defense stocks and named new favorites

Oil prices jumped 3% on Wednesday amid heightened tensions between the United States and Iran and the abrupt end of Russian-Ukrainian talks in Geneva just two hours after they began, Reuters <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/oil-prices-lose-ground-hopes-de-escalation-us-iran-tensions-2026-02-18/">reported</a>. Iran has temporarily blocked part of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical oil supply route - according to the official version, because of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps exercises. On Thursday, February 19, Iran and Russia <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/18/oil-prices-fall-slightly-on-hopes-of-de-escalation-from-us-iran-talks-.html">will conduct</a> joint exercises in the Sea of Oman and the northern part of the Indian Ocean. While the market is pricing in the risk of a closure of the Strait of Hormuz and a new wave of escalation, India - one of the biggest buyers of Russian oil - is cutting its imports to their lowest levels since 2022 and turning back to Middle Eastern suppliers, Reuters sources <a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/news/russian-share-indias-january-oil-142727785.html">said</a>. Against the backdrop of these shifts, an uncomfortable question arises: how marketable the Urals price and its discount to Brent remains, if the largest buyer of this oil is linked to its seller. Oil industry expert Sergey Vakulenko <a href="https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=25875782032030536&amp;id=100000762787435&amp;mibextid=wwXIfr&amp;rdid=gYshXuyY1DeOOMIo#">wrote a</a> great breakdown on his Facebook page, we publish it in full here