Penn Entertainment jumps amid report of approach from Boyd Gaming

Penn Entertainment (NASDAQ:PENN) rose 6.5% amid a report that Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) has made a takeover approach. Boyd fell 1.7%.

There's no certainty that Penn (PENN) will engage in talks with Boyd (BYD), according to a Reuters report on Thursday, which cited people familiar with the matter. Boyd will also need to win over Walt Disney (DIS) for a potential, as the entertainment giant's sport network ESPN has a partnership with Penn.

Boyd and Disney didn't immediately respond to Reuters request for comment.

The report comes after activist investor Donerail Group late last month said PENN could attract double its current trading price in a sale and urged the company to put itself on the market. The news pushed PENN shares up 20% on May 31.

News of the Boyd (BYD) approach also comes after the casino company added a director with investment banking experience to its board earlier this month. Boyd it added Michael A. Hartmeier to its board.

CNBC's David Faber earlier this month said Penn may see some takeover interest after the activist news was released.

News of the Boyd (BYD) interest also follows after a Truist analyst last week said that he doesn't expect PENN to conduct a strategic review in the near term.

"Despite the activist letter, we don’t think any sort of formal strategic review at PENN is likely in the near-term," Truist analyst Barry Jonas wrote in a note on Friday after recently meeting with management.