A rumor that Steve Ballmer wants to buy Twitter drove the stock up 8%, but an analyst says it won't happen
The rumored buyer: Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and Saudi Arabia's Prince Al-waleed Bin-Talal.
But according to CNBC and SunTrust analyst Robert Peck, the chatter is just a rumor and a deal is unlikely to happen.
During the Fast Money Halftime Report on CNBC on Wednesday, the program's host said they'd spoken with Peck, who dismissed the acquisition rumor.
Peck reportedly told CNBC that Twitter's board and CEO Jack Dorsey would not be willing to sell the company at this time, though he said an acquisition of the company in 2017 wouldn't surprise him.
Twitter's stock suffered a sharp decline over the past year as the company's business and user growth have stalled. Twitter's market cap, which once stood at $25 billion, has periodically fallen below $10 billion recently.
The decline in Twitter's stock has led to ongoing speculation that the company could be a takeover target.
Ballmer, who announced in October that he had purchased a 4% stake in Twitter, has voiced support for the company and CEO Dorsey in the past. Price Bin-Talal has a roughly 5% stake in the company.
Representatives for Ballmer and Prince Bin-Talal, and Twitter, did not immediately return requests for comment.