TheStreet's JD Durkin brings the latest business headlines from the New York Stock Exchange as markets open for trading on Tuesday, February 20.
Full video transcript below:
JD DURKIN: I'm JD Durkin, reporting from the New York Stock Exchange. This is what we are seeing today on TheStreet.
stocks are entering a shortened trading week as investors react to better-than-expected earnings from both Walmart and Home Depot. Both retailers remained resilient in the fourth quarter despite persistent inflation.
Markets await Wednesday's Federal Reserve meeting minutes, Thursday's jobless claims and earnings from big names like Warner Brothers, Etsy, NVIDIA and Wayfair.
In other news: Capital One is acquiring Discover Financial Services. The deal, set to close in late 2024 or early 2025, is an all-stock transaction worth more than $35 billion. The acquisition will give Capital One a market value of just over $52 billion.
If the deal is completed, Capital One shareholders will own 60 percent of the combined company, and Discover shareholders will own the remaining 40 percent. Discover shareholders will receive just over one share of Capital One for each share they own.
Unlike Visa and Mastercard, Discover has its own card networks, meaning the company itself helps negotiate the fees paid between merchants and consumers. Discover also processes payments itself, while many credit card issuers do not. Capital One CEO Richard Fairbank said the deal would “build a payments network that can compete with larger payments networks and companies.”
The deal would rank among the largest mergers and acquisitions made in 2024 so far. And as economic uncertainty caused a drop in M&A activity in 2023, deals in the United States are up 90 percent compared to this time last year.
That will be enough for your daily report. From the New York Stock Exchange, I'm JD Durkin with TheStreet.
