Discover Financial (DFS) to be Acquired by Capital One for $35B

Group 1: Acquisition Details - Discover Financial Services (DFS) will be acquired by Capital One Financial Corporation (COF) in an all-stock deal valued at $35.3 billion, with COF offering 1.0192 shares for each DFS share, representing a 26.6% premium on DFS's closing price of $110.49 on February 16, 2024 [1] - The transaction is expected to close by late 2024 or early 2025, pending regulatory and shareholder approvals [1] Group 2: Financial Performance and Synergies - Discover Financial's adjusted earnings fell 59% year over year in Q4 2023, indicating struggles in generating positive results [2] - The merger is anticipated to create expense synergies of $1.5 billion by 2027, with additional network synergies estimated at $1.2 billion [3] - The combined entity is expected to enhance product offerings through complementary credit card businesses and improve competitiveness in the banking sector [3] Group 3: Market Performance - Discover Financial's shares have increased by 28.6% over the past three months, slightly outperforming the industry average rise of 28% [4]