At The Motley Fool, we know our readers like to be informed. Here's a quick look at today's most relevant financial news, boiled down to what you need to know. In today's video, we cover the following:

  • Alcoa (NYSE: AA) plans to cut its smelting capacity by 12% and permanently close some facilities.
  • Boeing (NYSE: BA) fell behind rival Airbus in last year's jet sales. However, new commitments for Boeing's updated 737 MAX should lift the company to new heights in 2012. 
  • Barnes & Noble (NYSE: BKS) is considering a spinoff of its Nook e-reader business. The struggling company hopes the move will help boost the Nook's 13% market share among e-readers, which badly lags Amazon's (Nasdaq: AMZN) 67% share.

So there you have it -- the top financial stories of the day. If you're interested in getting all the news and commentary on these stocks, sign up for My Watchlist -- it's free!