More speculation surrounding accounting software group Sage.
There was some excitement among traders last week after talk the company could be in the sights of a bidder, with private equity groups mentioned as possible predators, along with the likes of Microsoft and SAP.
Now there are reports that Sage might have put its US operations up for sale.
But George O'Connor at Panmure Gordon - who was quite dismissive of the bid rumours - is equally unconvinced by the idea of an outright US sale. He said:
Noted blogger Dennis Howlett talks up rumours that Sage is selling its US operation - it is tosh of course. However, Sage could well be hawking one of its underperforming operating units - this would be very consistent with company strategy. Such a move would deflect attention away from the under-performing group as a whole - remember Sage uses words like "growth has not materialised" and "variable" to describe trading. As this fresh rumour seeps into the market the price is likely to tick upwards thereby presenting investors with another opportunity to bag some profit. Sell.
Sage shares are indeed higher at the moment, up 2.6p at 318.8p.
