Toronto, Ontario-headquartered Plaintree Systems Inc has seen its shares jump to a 12-month high amid speculation that the company could be a takeover target, hears the Toronto Financial Post. According to the paper, Plaintree, best known for its WaveBus 100Mbps Ethernet technology, could be in the sights of Hewlett-Packard Co, Bay Networks Inc, IBM Corp, Cisco Systems Inc and Cabletron Systems Inc. The range of interested parties may indicate that there is nothing to substantiate the rumours, save the fact that First Canadian Securities, which has a large number of US clients, has been an active buyer of Plaintree stock recently. None of the companies above has confirmed the report and, for its part, Plaintree says it is not aware of any unannounced developments that would explain the stock rise. But industry commentators are convinced that it is just a matter of time before a bidder emerges. They’re too small to be competing on their own, a source from Toronto-based analysts Eagles & Partners told the p aper, adding that It makes sense for a large company like Hewlett-Packard, or IBM for that matter, to acquire Plaintree. Plaintree’s largest shareholders are BCE Telecom International Inc and Delaney Walter & Co, which hold stakes of about 21% and 30% re spectively. If the company is left to its own devices, it intends to make a public offering and a listing for its shares on the US Nasdaq system.
