Investors dialled in on Talktalk Telecom Group PLC (LON:TALK) on Wednesday amid rumours that a possible takeover is on the cards.
Hedge fund Toscafund Asset Management has taken advantage of the recent slide in the telecoms group’s share price to up its stake to 16.2% (from 15.1%), prompting the takeover speculation.
READ: TalkTalk pulls out of plan to sell B2B unit
That comes just days after TalkTalk’s founder Charles Dunstone snapped up another £600,000 worth of shares to take his holding to 28.5%. Executive director Tristia Harrison also forked out £200,000 to buy up some more shares on Friday.
Last week, the FTSE 250 group pulled the plug on a deal which would have seen its business-to-business unit sold to Daisy Group for around £180mln.
TalkTalk said back in May that it was pursuing a sale as part of a wider strategy to simplify its operations and focus on growth areas.
READ: Numis upgrades TalkTalk but really isn’t a fan
The deal was called off last week, with reports suggesting Daisy was struggling to finance the acquisition.
City broker Numis said that ditching the Daisy deal was “bad news, twice over”, although it had bigger concerns with intensifying competition denting margins.
Shares rose 5.4% to 110.4p on Wednesday.