MADRID (Reuters) - Shares in Spain's Cellnex jumped 8% on Friday after a media report that said American Tower (NYSE:AMT) and asset manager Brookfield were weighing a possible takeover bid for the mobile phone tower operator.
Spanish online outlet Okdiario quoted unidentified sources close to the operation saying Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) was advising Cellnex, while Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) was advising American Tower and Brookfield.
Cellnex, Brookfield, American Tower and their advisers declined to comment.
Cellnex shares were up 8.3% at 12.21 GMT to lead gains in Spain's blue chip index Ibex-35.
The shares over the past year are down almost 40%.
Barcelona-based Cellnex this month said CEO Tobias Martinez would step down after the company in November announced a strategy shift away from acquisitions to focus on lowering debt.
After borrowing heavily to build the largest cellphone mast network in Europe, mainly through acquisitions, it has adopted a "more conservative financial risk profile" in the face of rising interest rates.