Why Liz Claiborne Soared

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of Liz Claiborne (NYS: LIZ) have soared by as much as 30% today on reports that the company has considered going private.

So what: The company has allegedly had talks with various private equity firms with an asking price as high as $20 per share, which is almost double yesterday's closing price of $11.83 and still a healthy premium to even today's high. KKR (NYS: KKR) is rumored to be among the firms still potentially interested.

Now what: Sources say that Liz Claiborne isn't currently interested in a sale or any type of deal, despite discussions over the past several months. The company is looking to continue with its restructuring efforts instead. A spokeswoman said, "We don't comment on highly speculative rumors -- especially involving the world of private equity. However, the performance of our stock and even our bonds suggest we have a committed investor base who believes in our strategy and our brands."

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At the time thisarticle was published Fool contributor Evan Niu holds no position in any company mentioned. Click here to see his holdings and a short bio. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days.

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