Twitter Inc. shares climbed, buoyed by expectations that the company could complete a deal to sell itself to Elon Musk as soon as Monday.
Shares of the social-media company advanced 3.8% to $50.80 during late morning trading. Twitter’s stock has swung wildly this month as investors have followed the twists and turns of Mr. Musk’s bid to buy the San Francisco-based company.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the two sides met Sunday to discuss the proposal from Mr. Musk, the chief executive of Tesla Inc.
TSLA -0.83%
and one of Twitter’s most popular and vocal users. The parties worked through the night on a deal that would be valued at $54.20 a share. The sides are in advanced discussions and could finalize a deal Monday, the Journal reported.
The advanced talks mark a dramatic turnaround from earlier this month, when Twitter was expected to rebuff Mr. Musk’s offer. That changed after Mr. Musk said he had lined up $46.5 billion to fund his bid for the company.
Mr. Musk had said from the start that his $54.20-a-share offer is his “best and final.” The last time Twitter’s shares traded above $54.20 was November 2021.
At $50.80 a share, Twitter’s stock is trading about 6% below Mr. Musk’s offer, a sign that shareholders are growing more optimistic that a deal will happen.
Since Mr. Musk disclosed a roughly 9% stake in the company in early April, Twitter shares have climbed nearly 30%. That has pushed Twitter higher on a year-to-date basis, outpacing other technology companies and the broader market. The S&P 500 is down about 11% for the year.
Twitter is expected to report first-quarter earnings Thursday. Analysts expect the company to post a boost in revenue, but a decline in net income compared with the year before, FactSet data show.
As Elon Musk attempts to buy Twitter, WSJ looks back at Twitter’s past suitors, like Salesforce, Disney and Alphabet. Tech reporter Tim Higgins explains why those past conversations fell through and what’s different this time. Illustration: Nikki Walker
Mr. Musk has indicated he wants to make substantial changes to Twitter, saying the company should shift toward a business model that relies more on subscriptions. He has also said Twitter should soften its stance on content moderation.
Mr. Musk’s bid for the platform has been popular among individual investors, who have poured a net $747 million into the stock in April, according to Vanda Research data through Friday. That is nearly 10 times the average monthly purchase by the group in 2021. As CEO of Tesla, Mr. Musk has built a loyal following of individual investors. Shares of the electric-car maker edged down 2.1% Monday.
Write to Caitlin McCabe at [email protected]
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