Benzinga's M&A Chatter for Tuesday December 16, 2014

The following are the M&A deals, rumors and chatter circulating on Wall Street for Tuesday December 16, 2014 Report Pantry Close to $1B Sale The Rumor:
Shares of The Pantry, Inc. PTRY rose 12% after-hours Tuesday, on a Wall Street Journal report that the company is close to a deal to be acquired for as much as $1 billion, according to sources. Pantry has reportedly hired an investment bank and bids were submitted last week. Sources say a deal could be announced within days. Pantry shares closed Tuesday at $28.85, and traded as high as $34.00 after hours. Citgo Receiving Bids Valuing Co at ~$10B The Rumor:
Venezuela's Citgo Petroleum Corp has received revised bids from at least four companies, including Marathon Petroleum Corp MPC, Valero Energy Corp VLO and HollyFrontier Corp HFC, that could value Citgo at more than $10 billion, according to a report from Reuters. Sources say some of the bids were above the $10 billion level, while others were less than $7 billion. There is uncertainty as to whether the Venezuelan government will sell Citgo. Citgo declined comment on the report. Repsol to Acquire Talisman Energy for $8.00/Share In Cash The Deal:
Talisman Energy TLM announced Tuesday, that it has entered into a definitive agreement, under which Repsol, S.A. REPYY will acquire all of the outstanding common shares of Talisman for US$8.00 per share in cash. The Talisman Board has unanimously approved the transaction; Talisman's common shareholders and preferred shareholders will vote on the transaction at a special meeting of shareholders to be held mid-February 2015. Talisman shares gained 48% Tuesday, to close at $7.58.