What happened
Shares of Twitter (TWTR) soared as much as 22.9% on Friday morning following rumors that the social network is courting a few buyout offers. Shares are up 17% at around 12:50 p.m. EDT.
Twitter headquarters. Image source: Twitter.
So what
Twitter "has received expressions of interest from several technology or media companies and may receive a formal bid shortly," reported CNBC on Friday morning.
Interestingly, CNBC specifically named two tech companies as "potential suitors": Alphabet (GOOG -1.48%) (GOOGL -1.62%) and salesforce.com (CRM -0.95%). But these are just two names "among other technology companies," according to CNBC.
CNBC cites unnamed "sources" for its scoop.
Salesforce is trading about 5% lower on the news, suggesting investors might disagree with the logic of a Twitter acquisition. Alphabet shares are trading flat.
Now what
Twitter investors are likely bullish about a potential acquisition because they believe shares would sell at a premium in a buyout transaction, particularly given that shares are down compared to a year ago. Twitter stock is down about 18% in the past year, even after recovering 36% in the past three months.
Investors should keep in mind that this is only speculation. And even if an acquisition does occur, it's impossible to guess what price the buying company would pay for Twitter.
