__No Flix Zone...__ __[Netflix](https://robinhood.com/stocks/NFLX)__ added an Oscar-worthy 10M new paid subscribers *last* quarter, crushing the 8.2M expected. But shares [fell](https://www.cnbc.com/2020/07/16/netflix-nflx-q2-2020-earnings.html?__source=twitter%7Cmain) 10% Thursday because investors are already thinking 3 months ahead (since you're already on Season 2 of *Dead to Me*). Netflix expects new subscriber growth to majorly slow this quarter to just 2.5M new subs. BTW: Netflix's current Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos will join Reed Hastings as co-CEO in a leading role. 

__Kim K, Joe Biden, and Apple walk into...__ a bitcoin scam. __[Twitter](https://robinhood.com/stocks/TWTR)__ suffered a major [hack](https://snacks.robinhood.com/newsletters/695acOxqA9l0V9Q9Xp38oj/articles/4aQQllifXyQmT3gMOFphRx) when accounts from Obama to Bezos started tweeting out requests for crypto payment. Twitter took the unprecedented step of blocking tweets from all verified users (aka blue checkmarks) to stop the damage. Despite the *relatively* harmless tweets (could've caused 1000X more havoc), the Twitter trust is bruised. The world is now questioning the security of the platform at the heart of market-moving breaking news. Just in time for the 2020 election. 





Lows

...and who's down

__$25B later...__ Back in April, airlines got [$25B](https://snacks.robinhood.com/newsletters/XFl10uA56LUjXq5vweRtc/articles/5B4WtFBkJTYQdMwixAwHFk/) in bailouts from the US government so they could continue paying their hundreds of thousands of employees. Under the terms, airlines can't make any layoffs or job cuts until September 30th. The hope was that the funds would be enough to tide airlines over until October, when travel was expected to pick up again. Reality check: *it's still bad*. 

- __While travel has ticked up__ since mid-April — when airlines had 96% fewer US passengers than they had in April 2019 — it's still pretty abysmal. 
- __On July 16th,__ the number of passengers passing through TSA was down [74%](https://www.tsa.gov/coronavirus/passenger-throughput) from normal times a year ago. COVID cases are surging again, so it doesn't seem like this will trend well.

__Honestly just sad...__ With depressed travel demand and high expenses, US airlines are burning through their bailout bucks. Now tens of thousands of employees are fearfully waiting for October 1st, when the ban on job cuts expires:

- __[American](https://robinhood.com/stocks/AAL)__ warned [25K](https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/american-airlines-warns-25-000-employees-about-potential-job-cuts-n1233962) employees (almost 20% of its workforce) about potential  cuts, citing an 80% drop in sales. 
- __[United](https://robinhood.com/stocks/UAL)__ told 36K employees (almost 40% of its workforce) that they could be furloughed.
- __[Southwest](https://robinhood.com/stocks/LUV)__, which has *never* had an involuntary furlough, told employees that cuts will happen unless passenger numbers 3X by the end of the year. 
- __[Delta](https://robinhood.com/stocks/DAL)__, which took a $5.7B loss last quarter, might have to [cut](https://skift.com/2020/07/18/delta-pilots-face-decision-accept-furloughs-or-agree-to-reduced-minimum-pay/) pilots' pay to avoid furloughs. CEO Ed Bastian called the pandemic's effect on the (formerly thriving) airline "truly staggering."

"_No Biscoff cookies?_"

__Was the bailout a waste?...__ The government spent $25B of taxpayers' money to save US jobs, but it looks like jobs are likely to be cut anyway. It's even possible that airlines will still go bankrupt. Buuut: Had the government *not* bailed out the airlines, layoffs likely would have come much earlier. That would've meant government $$$ going to workers through unemployment checks. With the bailout, the gov gets to continue collecting income tax from those employees — at least until Sep 30th. For the bailout to have a happy ending, we need to slow COVID (fast).

Airlines warn of massive job cuts in October, despite $25B in bailouts

__Extra cheesy...__ __[Domino's](https://robinhood.com/stocks/DPZ)__ US sales surged 16% because it doesn't give a crust that its spots were closed for in-store dining — it thrives on the *out-of-store* experience: mobile-order takeout, delivery, and now even "[Carside Delivery](https://thespoon.tech/dominos-takes-a-cue-from-grocery-with-its-new-carside-delivery-feature/)." Dom's is one of the few restaurant chains that handles its own delivery (no Uber Eats or Doordash), so it gets to keep 100% of its mobile orders. Now it's focused on opening stores closer together to improve delivery times (aka "fortressing").  

__Hold the Dom...__  __[Chase](https://robinhood.com/stocks/JPM)__, __[Citi](https://robinhood.com/stocks/C)__, __[Goldman](https://robinhood.com/stocks/GS)__, and __[Morgan Stanley](https://robinhood.com/stocks/MS)__ announced expectations-smashing earnings driven by record trading revenues. But Big Banks can't celebrate those big bucks yet. Last quarter, the government's multi-trillion stimulus powered bond trading and padded consumers' wallets. But the extra $600/week in unemployment benefits is set to expire next week, and COVID re-closures are happening. Banks see so many loan defaults in their future that they set aside [$30B+](https://snacks.robinhood.com/newsletters/1YSfPrq3GpLOGVYKoLdjDA/articles/4Lf0cRhYQdGsnUq9Yd476s) to cover those expected loan losses (on top of $20B+ *last* quarter). 

...and who's down

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