Benzinga's M&A Chatter for Thursday September 18, 2014

The following are the M&A deals, rumors and chatter circulating on Wall Street for Thursday September 18, 2014:

SAP to Acquire Concur for $129/Share The Deal

SAP SE (NYSE:

) and Concur Technologies, Inc. (NASDSQ: CNQR) announced Thursday, that SAP subsidiary, SAP America, has agreed to acquire Concur for $129 per share. The deal has an enterprise value of approximately US$8.3 billion, and will be funded from a credit facility agreement of up to €7 billion to cover the purchase price, target debt refinancing and acquisition-related costs.

Bloomberg

reported on September 9, that Concur was exploring a sale and mentioned SAP and Oracle (NYSE:

ORCL

) as potential acquirers. Concur Technologies shares closed Thursday at $107.80, and traded almost 20% higher, after-hours.

Report SodaStream Could be Target of SABMiller, Diageo, KKRThe Rumor

Shares of SodaStream International Ltd. (NASDAQ:

SODA

) rose Thursday in the premarket,

on a report from The Independent

, that Diageo (NYSE:

DEO

), KKR (NYSE:

KKR

) and SABMiller (OTC:

SBRMY

) could be interested in the Israeli maker of carbonated beverage machines. On Wednesday,

TheMarker

reported a possible deal with a British fund that could be worth $840 million. A spokesperson for SodaStream was not available for comment SodaStream shares closed Thursday at $32.49, a gain of 2%.

Activist Investors Seeking Breakup of Transcanada Corp.The Rumor

Shares of Transcanada Corp. (NYSE:

TRP

) surged higher Thursday, on a report from

Reuters

, that some of the company's major shareholders have been contacted by hedge funds, regarding a potential break-up of the company. Daniel Loeb's Third Point, is one of the hedge funds that has looked at Transcanada, according to people familiar with the matter. According to sources, Loeb has built up a stake in TransCanada. Third Point declined comment on the report. Transcanada Corp. closed Thursday at $55.52, gaining about 3.5% on 8 times average volume.

Report Yahoo Could Acquire AOL for Up to $60/ShareThe Rumor

Shares of AOL, Inc. (NYSE:

AOL

) spiked higher Thursday, on comments from BGC, that the company could be acquired by Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:

YHOO

) for as much as $60.00 per share. Spokespersons for the companies were not available for comment. AOL closed Thursday at $43.66, a gain of more than 6%.

Vitamin Shoppe Activist Shareholders Wants Co to Sell ItselfThe Rumor

Shares of Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. (NYSE:

VSI

) and GNC Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:

GNC

) moved sharply higher Thursday, on a report from

Reuters

that an activist investor has held conversations with the Vitamin Shoppe board, regarding a potential sale, according to sources. The shareholder had urged VSI to sell either to rival GNC or to a private equity firm, the sources said. A spokesperson for Vitamin Shoppe was not available for comment. Vitamin Shoppe closed Thursday at $45.44, a gain of almost 5%, while GNC shares also rose almost 5% to close at $41.02.

Epiq Systems Announces Review of Strategic Alternatives, Shareholder Rights Plan The Strategic Review :
Epiq Systems, Inc. (EPIQ) announced Thursday, that its Board of Directors has commenced a process to explore a full range of strategic and financial alternatives, which may include acquisitions, divestitures or a going-private transaction. The company said there is no timetable to complete the process and will not comment further unless a specific action is approved by the Board, or the company concludes the review of strategic alternatives. The Board also adopted a short-term shareholder rights agreement, consisting of a dividend of one right on each outstanding share of Epiq's common stock at the close of business on September 29, 2014. The purpose of the plan is to "ensure all shareholders realize the long-term value of their investment in the company and are protected from unfair or coercive takeover attempts." The Rights Plan will expire on May 15, 2015, unless terminated by the Board prior to that date. Epiq Systems closed Thursday at $17.42, and traded around $17.50 after-hours.

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