Benzinga's M&A Chatter for Thursday February 12, 2015

The following are the M&A deals, rumors and chatter circulating on Wall Street for Thursday February 12, 2015:

:

Expedia, Inc.

announced Thursday, it has agreed to acquire Orbitz Worldwide, Inc.

for $12.00 per share in cash, for an enterprise value of approximately $1.6 billion. The Boards of Directors of both companies have approved the transaction, which must now be approved by the shareholders of Orbitz Worldwide and regulatory authorities. Orbitz Worldwide shares gained more than 21% Thursday, closing at $11.72, while Expedia shares rose 14.5% to close at $89.57.

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Shares of Salix Pharmaceuticals Ltd;

spiked higher Thursday on a report from

, that Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc.

had arranged financing for a possible takeover of the Raleigh, NC drug company, according to sources. The offer would reportedly be more than $150 per share.

first reported the rumor of a possible Valeant deal for Salix on February 3. Spokespersons for the companies declined comment. Late Thursday,

reported that Shire plc

was working with advisers on a potential bid for Salix, according to their sources. Salix shares rose 4%, to close at $149.18, while Valeant shares gained almost 2%, closing at $167.50.

:

Shares of BP plc

spiked higher Thursday, on a report from the

that ExxonMobil Corporation

may be considering taking advantage of low oil prices and preparing to bid for companies struggling with the downturn. In addition to BP, Chevron Corporation

was mentioned as a possible target. There was unusual call activity in both BP and Chevron shares Thursday, following the report. BP shares closed Thursday at $47.50, a gain of 2.5%. Chevron gained 1.5% to close at $110.86.