Benzinga's M&A Chatter for Tuesday December 22, 2015

The following are the M&A deals, rumors and chatter circulating on Wall Street for Tuesday December 22, 2015:

Hearing Unconfirmed Market Chatter of Potential Priceline Bid for Yelp

The Rumor:
Shares of Yelp (NYSE: YELP) surged higher Tuesday on unconfirmed market chatter of a potential offer from Priceline Group (NASDAQ: PCLN). Yelp is the subject of frequent takeover chatter.

Spokespersons for the companies were not available for comment.

Yelp closed at $27.93, a gain of 8.8%.

Exxon Mobil Said to Bid for Occidental Petroleum

The Rumor:
Shares of (NYSE: OXY) rose Tuesday, on unconfirmed market chatter of a bid from Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM). The offer is said to be around $81 per share.

Spokespersons for Exxon and Occidental Petroleum were not available for comment.

Occidental Petroleum rose 1.27% Tuesday, closing at $66.98.

Hearing Las Vegas Sands Seeking Takeover, Merger With Wynn Resorts

The Rumor:
Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) is said to have approached Wynn Resorts Chairman Steven Wynn (NASDAQ: WYNN) and discussed a potential merger or buyout by LVS. A takeover offer of $95 per share or more is being discussed, according to sources.

Wynn Resorts closed at $67.65 on Tuesday, a gain of 2.87%. Las Vegas Sands rose 2.12% to close at $42.93

Shire Said to be Close to Deal to Acquire Baxalta

The Rumor:
Shire (NASDAQ: SHPG) is said to be close to a deal to acquire Baxalta (NYSE: BXLT), according to sources as reported by Reuters on Tuesday. The deal is expected to put a value on Baxalta of more than $30 billion, the sources said, though no specific price per share was mentioned.

Spokespersons for Baxalta and Shire declined comment on the rumor. Baxalta had rejected Shire's $30.6 billion all-stock bid in August.

Baxalta closed at $39.79 on Tuesday, a gain of 4.55%.

Syngenta Chairman Says in Sale Talks With Monsanta, SinoPec, Others

The Chairman Comments:
Michel Demare, Chairman of Syngenta (NYSE: SYT), confirmed in an interview with the Swiss publication Finanz und Wirtschaft, that the company is in advanced negotiations with various potential buyers. These include not only ChemChina (NYSE: SNP) and Monsanto (NYSE: MON), but other interested parties.

Benzinga reported on December 9, that ChemChina was preparing to submit an offer of $44 billion, according to sources.

Syngenta closed Tuesday at $78.46, up 2.86%.