What A Day - Stonk If You Love AMC

Episode Date: June 4, 2021

President Biden had hoped to have 70 percent of adults in the U.S. vaccinated with at least one shot by Independence Day, and we’re close to hitting that goal. Biden also elaborated on his plan to share 80 million vaccine doses by the end of the month, with the first batch of doses headed for South and Southeast Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean, and Africa. This was another banner week in the world of meme stocks, or stocks that have surged in value thanks to attention from retail investors on the Internet. We walk through what went on with AMC, and how the company is responding.Plus, we’re joined by comedian and actress Aparna Nancherla for headlines: Donald Jr. is on Cameo, two kids drive a car to see dolphins, and fifteen elephants are on a mysterious journey in China.Show Notes:NYT: "See How Vaccinations Are Going in Your County and State" – https://nyti.ms/2TK5k0dFor a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday.

It's Friday, June 4th. I'm Keela Hughes. And I'm Gideon Resnick. And this is What The Day, the podcast from an alternate timeline where Ben Affleck and J-Lo never even broke up. Yeah. In fact, they joined a throuple with P. Diddy and they're all doing really great. On today's show, we're going to break down AMC's wild ride on the stock market. Plus, we'll have headlines. But first, the latest. In just four months, thanks to the American people,

we've made incredible progress in getting people vaccinated quickly, efficiently, and equitably. Nearly 170 million Americans of every party, every background, every walk of life have stepped up, rolled up their sleeves and gotten the shot. That was President Biden talking about the U.S. vaccination campaign. And we are exactly one month out from that July 4th deadline Biden set to get a specific number of people in America vaccinated. So where do things stand? Yeah, we're getting quite close. It's great. Biden talked about wanting 70% of adults with at least one shot at that point. We are now at 63%, according to the CDC. He had also mentioned 60% of adults being fully vaccinated by July 4th, and we're at 52% there. So overall, doing pretty darn good. But the New York Times broke down in

a bunch of helpful graphics that there are quite a lot of states that are pretty likely to miss this threshold by the deadline. In fact, they estimated that 30 states are actually not going to make it, and some are unlikely to hit 70% by the end of the year if their vaccination rates continue as they have. We can link to the article in our show notes so you can get a picture of this, but some examples of states where about half or fewer of adults have gotten at least one dose include a lot in the South, Alabama, Louisiana, Georgia, and Tennessee. Then on the other side of things, bringing up the national average are states like Illinois, Colorado, New York, and others that are at or even approaching that 70% first shot number. But even in those cases, we're talking about huge areas. So a state

with good overall numbers might have pockets of regions where vaccinations are actually really low. Yeah. And there are all the fun incentives out there that we've talked about, scoring free donuts, states having lotteries, et cetera. But this week, the Biden administration also announced a more urgent and practical one. Yeah, that's right. Childcare. So we had touched on this before, but one of the things that has come up in surveys around vaccination is not always the obvious reluctance or hesitancy or even, you know, crazy conspiracies you might come across, but concerns about taking care of children or missing work to either get vaccinated or recover from the side effects. So a few days ago, Biden announced that four of the major child care providers in the U.S. are going to provide free care to help parents and caregivers

get vaccinated. And of course, private businesses are amping up what they're doing to. CVS is doing a sweepstakes where people could win Super Bowl tickets. United Airlines apparently has something similar that earns vaccinated people the chance for a year of free flights. Yeah, so if you want to go, I guess, state to state, since the world is not exactly open, great. Wonderful value. Explore every route imaginable. Good for you. Kroger is going to give $1 million to a

vaccinated person every week this month. And Anheuser-Busch is promising free beer on July 4th if the country hits the 70% goal. Terms and conditions apply for all of these things, et cetera, et cetera. But you know that. But yeah, the White House and others are really trying to go all in this month because the daily average of doses given out has dropped by like 67% since the peak in mid-April. And where there isn't vaccine coverage, there, of course, is a chance for more spread. Yeah. And then we got news of what America's plan is to help get the rest of the world vaccinated and how we'll finally be sharing doses with other countries. So what's the word? Yeah. So we got our first glimpse of this yesterday. By the end of this

month, America is planning on sharing 80 million doses. The White House broke down where the first batch, about 25 million shots, are going to be shared. About 19 million doses are going to go to COVAX, which is this international program by the World Health Organization to get vaccines to poorer nations. Those doses will be dedicated specifically for South and Southeast Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean, and Africa. Then the rest of what we're sharing at first will head to places experiencing surges or where the need is more immediate. That includes India, Iraq, the West Bank, and Gaza, and more. And the clock is really ticking here. The WHO recently raised the alarm about rising test positivity in 14 African countries with concern

about a conceivable wave that could spread across the continent. And the U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan recently recommended that U.S. citizens actually leave due to worsening conditions there. Much, much more we will get into soon. But on to something that couldn't be any more different, Akilah. This week has been another crazy ride on the stonk train. Can you help break down what has been going on? Yes, indeed, Gideon. So for those who are unaware of the concept of stonks, they are simply the meme stocks and digital currency tidal waves sweeping the nation,

and in regards to the latter, the entire world. So we reported on AMC, GameStop, and Nokia earlier than the year when short sellers and Reddit collectives saw this big opportunity to make quick cash. But since then, a lot has happened. The app Robinhood froze people's assets. Reddit made some communication channels disappear. Dogecoin's moonward trajectory was derailed after Elon Musk hosted SNL and Bitcoin's value dropped by $20,000 plus. of cash, which is allegedly a billion dollars worth between December and January, and earlier this week rallied to its highest share price yet. But then yesterday it closed down 20%, but also, hey, still up in general. Okay, so some major swings up and down here. So what actually accounts for these latest gains? Is it just more memes? No, we are talking about real money, Gideon. So at the beginning of the week, AMC made gains by selling stock to a hedge fund. Then by selling more shares on the markets yesterday, the company said that it raised over $587 million in additional equity capital. But it's not exactly like AMC is ashamed of the meme clout.

In fact, they're leaning into it. They've started a new platform for investors to get free popcorn or advanced screenings of films, which might not seem like much. But if you've left your house lately, it seems like everything is way too expensive. Also, smart way to get people to still buy tickets and support your company the old-fashioned way, by sitting in a theater, getting their feet sticky, and watching pretty people kiss.

So yeah, despite all the high highs and low lows, the takeaway is that this Wall Street strategy has allowed AMC, a theater chain on the brink of being closed forever, to bounce back just as things are reopening nationwide. Yeah. So is it safe to invest in these stocks? Are we all too late to benefit at this point, asking for not anyone in particular? Well, this is not financial advice, but AMC themselves put out a statement yesterday basically warning prospective investors of the volatile nature of the stock, which also almost certainly contributed to the dip at the end of the day yesterday. In the statement, they said, quote, our current market prices reflect market

and trading dynamics unrelated to our underlying business or macro or industry fundamentals, and we do not know how long these dynamics will last. Eesh is right. And Wall Street analysts are also not convinced that this kind of thing has staying power. But for younger generations with no accrued wealth because of stagnant wages, investing $100 here or there seems worth the risk, at least in the short term. So to those young, brave cowboys investing here and there in the fun, uncharted wild west of meme stocks, may the odds be ever in your favor. We'll keep you posted on how this all shakes out as theaters start going wide with releases again soon.

And that's the latest for now. Let's wrap up with some headlines. Headlines. Today, we have a very special guest, comedian and actress Aparna Nancherla. Welcome to WOD. So good to see you. Thank you for having me. Thank you for being here.

Okay, well, Donald Trump Jr. became the first president's son to join the gig economy this week by opening an account on the website Cameo. So deranged fans of the businessman-slash-sworn enemy of endangered species can now pay him between $500 and $800 for a personalized video message, which might sound like this. Keep going with the turkey hunting and the deer hunting and the fishing. And being in the woods, as you know, it's a big part of me and my lifestyle. So if I don't run into you at Doral,

maybe I'll see you in the woods or in a stream or on a lake or on the water someday. That was... Sounds like a threat. Sweaty audio. Wow. Yeah, woof, woof. Things are not going well for him.

All right, well, side note. If you do see Donald Trump Jr. in a body of water, back away or he will bite your leg and drag you under. I've seen it happen. Trump's new turn as a freelance greeting card comes after he said he's been spending millions of dollars on criminal probes into the Trump organization. He can beat him at his own game

by paying him to record a cameo where he says, I am officially guilty of doing everything bad. I hope he says it. I don't know how much that costs. If he is going to join the gig economy, I would rather a cameo than him as like your uber driver oh i know i don't think you're making it to your destination i'm just putting it out there keeping that conversation up painful yeah he would be a chatter i think okay here's good advice for

anyone planning a post-vaccine road trip don Don't do it if you're in elementary school. Two sisters from Utah helped illustrate this point on Wednesday when they got in their parents' car at 3 a.m. and traveled 10 miles from home. The driver was 9 years old and the passenger was 4, meaning that even if you combine their ages, they'd still only be allowed to drive on some farms. The sisters did collide with a semi truck, but thankfully no one was hurt. Their reason for getting behind the wheel is very relatable though. If you spent the last year plus locked inside, they wanted to go to the ocean in California and swim with dolphins.

To dolphin sisters, this is your cue to steal motorcycles and ride to Utah. Aw, precious. The cutest car crash I've ever heard of. Seriously. I know. I was like, this sounds like a Pixar movie.

It ends very quickly. It's a short. A magical journey. Also, in Gray Mammals Going on Adventures, a herd of 15 elephants is currently marching across China on the longest ever movement of elephants in the country. The animals have traveled more than 300 miles through villages and forest patches,

shoveling crops down their throats and causing more than $1.1 million in damages. Wow. The thing no one tells you about elephants is they actually have no respect for private property. It is in their nature. As of Wednesday night, the elephants were edging closer to a city with a population of 8.5 million, which is at risk of becoming one big elephant bouncy castle.

The elephants left their home last spring. Some have suggested they're looking for a new habitat, while others have blamed their long journey on an inexperienced elephant leader. Men continue to refuse to ask for directions. I am, of course, referring to myself, refusing to get directions to go meet these stunning and courageous elephants. I hope you get to see them, Gideon. I really do.

I'll bring you guys along. I'll bring you guys along. It's so funny to think of elephants as having a leader, because you're like, did he have to interview for that? Right. Yeah. Like, was he just walking the fastest? I'm great with maps.

I know a place. He's like, look, I got us here. I'll get us there. And they're not getting there. People will soon be able to fight over an armrest at higher speeds than ever because United Airlines announced yesterday that it was ordering 15 jets that can go above the speed of sound. The planes are made by a Denver company called Boom Supersonics, appropriate, which actually was Sheldon's catchphrase on Big Bang Theory

before they changed it to Bazinga. The planes have yet to be approved or built, but once they're in operation, they will reportedly be able to fly from New York to London in three and a half hours, giving passengers barely enough time to read ads for the nation's top plastic surgeons in hemispheres in flight magazine. Service could begin by 2029, and the jets will only contain business class seats. I will go and sit on an exercise ball in the aisle so they all have something bad to compare themselves to. Very important. Taking one for the team. We need someone to be in a class lower than us.

The way flights have always been. I do feel like an exercise ball in the aisle is still more comfortable than some of the economy seats. Absolutely. Spread your legs out. Yeah, you're good. Yeah.

If you're going that fast, you bounce off the wall. Beautiful. Oh, my gosh. Well, Aparna, you are amazing. I have to say, because this is a podcast, I just think you have the best speaking voice I've ever heard. Every time you speak, I'm just like, yeah, she was was meant to say it was there anything that you would like to plug well appropriately I will plug a voice thing um I I am a character on this new Fox show The Great North which I think their season finale just happened or I should know that but I think the season finale

just happened but it is available to stream on Hulu so check it out you can hear more of this voice I loved it I love it also it is a great show please check it out everybody well thank you so much for being here Parna and those are the headlines That is all for today. If you like this show, make sure you subscribe, leave a review, give us directions to the elephants, and tell your friends to listen. And if you're into reading and not just hemispheres, in-flight magazine like me. What Today is also a nightly newsletter.

Check it out and subscribe at crooked.com slash subscribe. I'm Akilah Hughes. I'm Gideon Resnick. And don't drive, children. You're not ready. You're not ready. There's a test for a reason. What a Day is a production of Crooked Media.

It's recorded and mixed by Charlotte Landis. Sonia Tun and Jazzy Marine are our associate producers. Our head writer is John Milstein, and our executive producers are Leo Duran, Akilah Hughes, and me. Our theme music is by Colin Gilliard and Kashaka.