Shares in US Internet giant Yahoo have risen sharply over the last two days on heightened speculation that several private-equity firms are mulling an offer to take the firm private. According to sources at the Wall Street Journal report, private-equity firms Silver Lake Partners and Blackstone Group are among those studying options, one of which includes a tie-up with AOL to acquire Yahoo outright. The interest among financial firms is preliminary and the parties have yet to approach Yahoo about any deal, people familiar with the matter say. However, Yahoo has reportedly hired Goldman Sachs to investigate the potential offers and advise on its next steps if any approach becomes formal. Yahoo’s stock rose 6 percent Wednesday and was up as much as 10 percent yesterday before closing at US$15.93, up 4.5 percent.

The potential suitors believe a Yahoo-AOL combination could yield big cost savings, boosting the profitability of their online advertising businesses. According to Marianne Wolk, an analyst at Susquehanna Financial, Yahoo is on track to sell about US$2 billion worth this year and AOL is on track to sell US$500 million. However, both are relatively weak in the mobile space. Yahoo has lost ground in the sector as many high-profile operators have opted to go with rival Google for mobile search. The firm has based its recovery partly on a relationship with Nokia, which will see the two companies combine their online and mobile Internet service offerings. AOL already has a longstanding partnership in place with Google.