Wall Street's M&A Chatter From August 31: Barnes & Noble, Constellium, Daiichi Sankyo

The following are the M&A deals, rumors and chatter circulating on Wall Street for Thursday, August 31, 2017.

Barnes & Noble Denies Rumors Of Sale

The Rumor:

Barnes & Noble, Inc. BKS has been working with Guggenheim on a potential sale, according to a report from DealReporter on Thursday. Sources said BKS has had discussions with private equity firms Apollo Global Management APO and Platinum Equity.

A spokesperson for Barnes & Noble told Benzinga it was not in sale talks at this time.

Barnes & Noble closed at $7.75 on Thursday, up 45 cents.

Birla Said to Consider Bids for Constellium, Aleris

The Rumor:

Indian billionaire Kumar Mangalam Birla is considering bidding for Constellium NV CSTM and Aleris Corp., according to sources as reported by Bloomberg. Talks are in a preliminary stage, the sources said.

Bloomberg reported in early August that Constellium was considering its options following receipt of takeover interest.

Constellium closed at $11.30, up 85 cents.

Daiichi Sankyo Denies Acquisition Offer from AstraZeneca

The Rumor:

AstraZeneca AZN offered to buy Japan's Daiichi Sankyo Co DSNKY in 2016, according to sources as reported by Nikkei Business. The Japanese drugmaker declined the offer, the sources said.

Daiichi Sankyo responded to the report, later on Thursday, saying it had received no takeover offer from AstraZeneca. The UK drugmaker did not comment on the rumor.

AstraZeneca closed at $29.83, up 58 cents.