Wall Street's M&A Chatter From April 27: Advisory Board, Whole Foods, SiriusXM-Automatic Labs, Apollo-West Corp

The following are the M&A deals, rumors and chatter circulating on Wall Street for Thursday, April 27, 2017.

Advisory Board Asks Potential Buyers to Submit Another Round of Bids

The Rumor:

The Advisory Board ABCO has asked potential buyers to submit another round of bids in early May, according to sources as reported by Deal Reporter. The company received more than 20 offers in the first round, with initial bids in the low $50s per share. Final offers could be above $60.

Advisory Board announced in February the company had commenced a review of potential strategic alternatives, including a possible sale and had hired Goldman Sachs and Allen & Company as financial for the process.

Advisory Board closed at $49.10, up $2.55.

Neuberger Berman Asks Whole Foods to Explore Sale

The Investor Letter:

Mutual fund manager Neuberger Berman has sent a letter to the Whole Food's WFM Board, urging the upscale grocer to engage advisers and consider a potential sale, according the the Wall Street Journal. The letter from Neuberger, who owns a 2.7 percent stake, comes weeks after activist investor Jana Partners disclosed approximately 9 percent stake in Whole Foods, also calling for a strategic review.

Neuberger has been speaking to Whole Foods since last year, but isn't working in concert with Jana. A Whole Foods Spokesperson said the company welcomes shareholder input. The company is the subject of frequent takeover rumors.

Whole Foods closed at $36.90, up $0.55.

SiriusXM Reports Purchase of Automatic Labs

The Deal:

SiriusXM SIRI announced the acquisition of Inc., an Automatic Labs San Francisco-based provider of the connected vehicle services for consumers and enterprises, Automatic. The transaction closed in Q2 of 2017.

SiriusXM closed at $5.02, down $0.09.

Apollo Global in advanced talks to buy West Corp

The Rumor:

Apollo Global Management LLC APO is in advanced talks to acquire West Corp WSTC, according to sources as reported by Reuters. The sources said Apollo was the winner in an auction for the call center technology services provider, though the companies are still in negotiations.

The purchase price isn't known, but West Corp's $3 billion debt is a sticking point.

West Corp closed at $26.91, up $1.61.