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Market Data Table

Breakfast News: AI Pledge Concern After NVDA Pivot

February 20, 2026

Thursday's Markets
S&P 500 6,862 (-0.28%)
Nasdaq 22,683 (-0.31%)
Dow 49,395 (-0.54%)
Bitcoin $67,012 (+1.04%)

Bar chart showing Nvidia's EBITDA over the past three years, starting at $2.7 billion in the second quarter of 2023 and rising, aside from a slight dip in the second quarter of 2025, to $38.7 billion in fourth-quarter 2025.

1) NVDA Downgrades to $30 Billion OpenAI Stake

The Financial Times reports Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) is finalizing a $30 billion investment into OpenAI as part of a new funding round, replacing the $100 billion commitment agreed upon by the two companies last year. Nvidia was little changed ahead of the opening bell.

New equity investment values OpenAI at $730 billion: Most of the fresh capital will be used to buy Nvidia hardware and expand computing capacity, alongside utilizing funds raised elsewhere.
Concern around the $100 billion letter of intent: The agreement to invest a significantly larger amount of money has reportedly been put to one side, raising some concerns about other similar large pledges that have supported the broader artificial intelligence (AI)-related stock market rally.

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2) Pre-Market Rule Breakers Movers

Texas Roadhouse (NASDAQ:TXRH) rose around 2% ahead of the market open as results detailed a higher quarterly dividend. In December, Fool analyst Matt Argersinger praised the Stock Advisor pick by Team Rule Breakers. He highlighted that "zero long-term debt is insane. They can self-fund all their growth through their cash flows."
Copart (NASDAQ:CPRT) dropped over 7% before the opening bell due to earnings and revenue missing expectations. The Foundational Stock in RB took a hit on lower insurance auction volumes.
Live Nation (NYSE:LYV) lifted 3% in pre-market trading thanks to a strong set of quarterly results, with CEO Michael Rapino noting "a deep pipeline of large-scale shows and ticket demand." The stock is beating the S&P 500 by 32% since the January 2023 RB recommendation.

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3) Private Credit Concerns Grow Louder

Blue Owl Capital (NYSE:OWL) closed 6% lower yesterday after halting redemptions from one of its debt funds, stoking fresh speculation in the private credit sector of stress and the potential for large losses.

"This is a canary in a coal mine": Dan Rasmussen, the founder of Verdad Capital, believes the private markets bubble is finally starting to burst, as years of low interest rates pushed investors to go further out on the risk spectrum in credit markets.
Private credit has ballooned into a $3 trillion market: Loans made by non-bank lenders, such as Blue Owl, have grown not only in size but also in scope of interest, with retail investors playing an increasingly large role in supplying funds.

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4) What's the Best Place to Retire?

The Motley Fool has released its "2026 Best Places to Retire in the U.S. list," which evaluates every U.S. county using a mix of primary and secondary data -- including insights from thousands of retired Americans.

Read the full report here.

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5) Your Take

How do you decide whether a company is expensive or appropriately priced for growth? What metrics matter most to you beyond price-to-earnings (P/E) ratios?

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

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