Discover price target raised to $145 from $115 at Argus

Argus raised the firm’s price target on Discover (DFS) to $145 from $115 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares after the company agreed to be acquired by Capital One Financial (COF) in an all-stock deal valued at $35B. The firm views the merger positively, offering scale opportunities for marketing, compliance and technology costs, and a larger vertically-integrated platform to compete better with other payment networks, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Capital One also sees double-digit EPS accretion in 2026 and 15% in 2027, reflecting $1.5B of expense synergies and $1.2B of network synergies as its debit purchase volume moves to Discover’s network, Argus added.