Benzinga's M&A Chatter for Thursday February 23, 2012

The following are the M&A deals, rumors and chatter circulating on Wall Street for Thursday February 23, 2012: Hearing Alibaba in Talks to Acquire Renren The Rumor:
Alibaba (ALBCF) is in talks to acquire Renren RENN, according dealReporter. Renren was recently named as a target of Baidu BIDU. The share price has fallen sharply from its IPO high of 24 in May 2011. A spokesperson for Renren was not available for comment. Renren closed at $5.19 Thursday, a loss of 1.33% on average volume. Hearing Illinois Tool Works May Acquire Manitowoc The Rumor:
Illinois Tool Works ITW has presented Manitowoc MTW with an offer of $25 per share, according to sources. Benzinga contacted both companies, but did not receive a reply. Manitowoc closed at $16.13 Thursday, a gain of 0.50% for the day on 1.5 times the average volume. CITIC Capital Continues Talks to Acquire AsiaInfo-Linkage The Rumor:
Chinese private equity firm CITIC Capital is in talks to acquire AsiaInfo-Linkage ASIA. A spokesperson for AsiaInfo-Linkage confirmed to Benzinga that the two sides are in discussions, but would not comment on rumors that the acquisition price was between $15 and $17 per share. AsiaInfo-Linkage closed at $12.89 Thursday, a loss of 0.77% for the day on slightly less than average volume. Hearing Vague Chatter of Apple Takeover of Fusion-Io The Rumor:
Apple may have an interest in acquiring Fusion-io, according to an interpretation of comments made by CEO Tim Cook at Apple's shareholder meeting. Fusion-io has been a frequent takeover name with Intel INTC and NetApp NTAP among potential buyers recently mentioned. A spokesperson for Fusion-io was not available for comment. Fusion-io closed at $27.60 Thursday, a gain of 3.25% for the day on average volume.