LONDON (Reuters) - Shares in BSkyB rose 3.5 percent in strong volume to a two-year high Friday after traders cited talk that Rupert Murdoch could take the satellite broadcaster private.
Analysts cast doubt on the move and said they would expect the shares would be higher if traders and investors thought the rumour was serious.
A number of traders said the talk was that Murdoch's News Corporation, which owns around 39 percent of the London-listed firm, could offer 735 pence a share for the rest of it.
By 3:50 p.m., more than 16 million BSkyB shares had been traded versus the 30-day average daily volume of 4.55 million. Its stock was at 591 pence.
Both BSkyB and Murdoch's News Corp declined to comment on the rumour.
UBS analyst Polo Tang said in a note to clients it was not clear why News Corp would want to do a deal now.
"News Corp already has effective control and it could have acquired BSkyB in the past at a lower share price," he said. "Separately, we believe News Corp is likely to be more focussed on smaller deals.
"In our view, the only strategic rationale for News Corp making a move on BSkyB would be if they thought it was significantly undervalued and was about to enter a period of significant cash generation post significant investment in its broadband rollout.
"However, BSkyB may potentially face further investment in fibre."
(Reporting by Jon Hopkins and Kate Holton, editing by Will Waterman)