Breakfast News: Nvidia And Meta Ink Huge AI Deal

Breakfast News: Nvidia And Meta Ink Huge AI Deal

February 18, 2026

Source: Image created by Jester AI.

1. NVDA, META, MSFT Continue AI Expansion

Nvidia (NVDA 0.96%) and Meta (META 1.97%) announced a new deal yesterday for Meta to use millions of Nvidia’s Blackwell and other chips, plus networking technology, in its data centers and for powering AI offerings. Neither company has revealed the new deal’s value, and both saw their share prices edge up slightly in pre-market trading.

• “No one deploys AI at Meta’s scale”: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang spoke of “deep codesign across CPUs, GPUs, networking, and software,” while Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg enthused over delivering “personal superintelligence to everyone in the world.”
• $50 billion by the end of the decade: Microsoft (MSFT +0.32%) this morning said it’s on track in its spending plans for AI expansion in countries across the Global South. Fool analyst Seth Jayson recently noted “Numbers tossed out by hyperscalers over the past couple of days come to an insane $650 billion for 2026 alone – a 60% increase over the prior year.”

2. What You Might’ve Missed From Tuesday’s Post-Market Results

• Cadence Design (CDNS 0.01%) posted a 6.2% rise in Q4 revenue year over year (YoY) after market close, boosted by agentic AI, CEO Anirudh Devgan praised the “world’s first agentic AI solution for automating chip design and verification,” saying it “provides up to 10x productivity improvement for various tasks.” The stock gained nearly 5% overnight.
• Palo Alto (PANW +0.20%) achieved a 15% rise in Q2 revenue YoY. Despite raised full-year guidance, fears of AI edging in on cybersecurity helped push the Rule Breakers recommendation down 8% in early trading – though CEO Nikesh Arora said AI “actually drives more consistency in security stacks,” while admitting “AI adoption is slower on the enterprise side.”
• EQT (EQT +0.83%) – a Hidden Gems rec – reported a fourth quarter notable for significant gains in revenue, earnings, and cash flow, plus a fall in net debt. The natural gas producer’s quarterly sales volume of 609 billion cubic feet beat guidance. The stock was little changed following the earnings release.

3. Next Up: SA Recs From Team Rule Breakers Reporting

• Wingstop (WING 5.00%) – sixth in the January 2026 Stock Advisor rankings – is due to report before today’s opening bell. The chicken restaurant set a new record for store openings in Q3, though it did miss Wall Street revenue expectations. This time, analysts see revenue growing 10% YoY, as Wingstop closed 13.5% up yesterday.
• Garmin (GRMN +0.44%) results are also scheduled for this morning, following record revenue and operating income in Q3. Investors will be watching EPS, which came in flat last time – with a dip close to 1% expected in the current quarter.
• eBay (EBAY 0.61%) – also recommended in Dividend Investor – will update us after market close, with revenue growth above 11% penciled in for the final quarter – above the high-single-digit guidance offered at Q3 time. There’s a 1.45% dividend yield predicted.

4. Berkshire Trims AMZN, APPL; Buys NYT, CVX

Berkshire Hathaway (BRKB 1.59%) sold 75% of its holding in Amazon (AMZN 1.37%) in Q4, the company’s latest filing reveals, and continued trimming its Apple (AAPL 1.19%) stake – though Apple is still its biggest holding. In Warren Buffett’s final quarter as CEO, Berkshire made a new investment in The New York Times (NYT 3.14%) and upped its stake in Chevron (CVX 0.25%).

• “An idiot for not buying” sooner: Back in 2019 when Berkshire first bought Amazon, Buffett rued his missed earlier opportunities based on his then-dislike of tech stocks. But he told CNBC it was “one of the fellows in the office that manage money” who made the buy.
• “One of the all-time greats. Not perfect. Never tried to be. Humble. Principled. Dedicated. Brilliant”: On December 31, TMF chief investment officer Andy Cross praised Buffett while reminding us “Starting tomorrow Greg Abel takes over as CEO of the $1 trillion conglomerate” with future direction uncertain. Did we just get a glimpse?

5. Your Take

Garmin’s primary business used to be in-car navigation products, though now it has become a diversified designer, manufacturer, and distributor of GPS-enabled products around the world, including marine electronics, avionics, and more.

What other company has ‘diversified hard’ (with a vengeance) and may look like a market beater over the next 3-5 years from here? And if nothing springs to mind, try asking an AI Assistant!

Debate with friends and family, or become a member to hear what your fellow Fools are saying!