Intel gains amid takeover, Musk mentioned

Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) rose 9% after some vague takeover speculation about the chipmaker.

A report from SemiAccurate was circulating on Friday about a company looking to acquire Intel (NASDAQ:INTC). According to a Citi note, Elon Musk was mentioned as a potential buyer behind the paywall of SemiAccurate.

"We view this as a poor outcome for Intel unless it was able to hire a CEO who would exit the merchant foundry business ...." Citi analyst Christopher Danely wrote in a note on Friday.

Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) didn't immediately respond to Seeking Alpha's email request for comment.

"About two months ago, SemiAccurate was read an email about a company trying to acquire Intel, whole," according to the report. "We have absolute faith in the accuracy of this email but it took months to confirm it."

The latest speculation comes after Bloomberg reported in late November that Qualcomm's (QCOM) interest in potentially acquiring Intel waned due to complexities associated with a transaction. Qualcomm could still look at acquiring parts of Intel or rekindle its takeover interest at a later time.

Qualcomm (QCOM) reportedly approached Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) about a potential takeover in September, and had earlier explored buying the chipmaker's design business. Bloomberg also reported that Broadcom (AVGO) was evaluating a bid for Intel, though wasn't looking at it as of September.