Symantec's stock is spiking on a report Broadcom is in advanced talks to buy the cybersecurity firm

AP/Marcio Jose Sanchez

• Symantec shares spiked early Wednesday after Bloomberg reported Broadcom was in "advanced talks" to acquire the cybersecurity firm, citing people familiar with the matter.
• Symantec shares posted the largest early gain in the S&P 500 on Wednesday.
• Symantec's former chief executive, Greg Clark, unexpectedly stepped down in May.
• Track Broadcom and Symantec shares here in real time.

Investors snapped up shares of Symantec early Wednesday after Bloomberg reported the semiconductor giant Broadcom was in "advanced talks" to buy the cybersecurity firm.

Symantec's stock was the largest early gainer in the S&P 500 in pre-market trading, with a 17% jump, while Broadcom shares slipped 4%. Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter, said the acquisition would mark a further expansion into "the more profitable software business."

Broadcom could reach an agreement to buy Symantec "within weeks," Bloomberg reported. A deal has not been finalized, however, and the talks could still fall through, according to the report.

Representatives for Symantec and Broadcom did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.

The semiconductor company has recently signaled to Wall Street that it would focus on buying up software companies, Business Insider's Becky Peterson reported this week. Broadcom's chief financial officer, Tom Krause, told Morgan Stanley that remaining independent semiconductor have become too expensive.

Read more: Broadcom tells Wall Street it will focus on acquiring software companies, a year after the Trump administration squelched its $117 billion Qualcomm acquisition

The Trump administration last year dealt a blow to Broadcom, which is based in San Jose, California, when it blocked the company's takeover of rival semiconductor firm Qualcomm.

Broadcom has undergone a changing of the guard this year. Its former chief executive officer, Greg Clark, exited unexpectedly in May. His departure sent shares plunging. Richard Hill, a director at the company, was named as an interim CEO. That announcement came as Symantec fell short of Wall Street's quarterly earnings expectations.

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