Verizon quells speculation after reports it was preparing joint £161bn takeover with AT&T sent Vodafone shares to record high

Verizon Communications, the US telecoms company, has moved to quell speculation it is preparing a joint takeover of Vodafone, telling investors it has no plans for a bid.

Reports that Verizon and fellow US company AT&T were preparing a joint £161bn bid sent Vodafone’s shares to a decade-high on Tuesday, forcing Verizon to clarify its intentions.

Verizon has made no secret of its desire to take full control of the largest mobile network in the US, Verizon Wireless, which it owns jointly with Vodafone.

In a statement on Tuesday night, the company said: “As Verizon has said many times, it would be a willing purchaser of the 45% stake that Vodafone holds in Verizon Wireless. It does not, however, currently have any intention to merge with or make an offer for Vodafone, whether alone or in conjunction with others”.

Vodafone shares soared as much as 6%, valuing the company at £94bn, after the Financial Times suggested the bid could be pitched at about 260p a share. At this price, it would be the world’s biggest ever corporate acquisition, dwarfing the current record-holder AOL’s $182bn (£120bn) takeover of Time Warner in 2000. They fell back 3%, to 187p, in early trading on Wednesday.

“We think that the wording of Verizon’s press release also makes it clear that Verizon have made their interest in the Verizon Wireless stake to Vodafone and been rebuffed,” said Robin Bienenstock, an analyst at Bernstein Research. “In other words, we view Vodafone as a (very) reluctant seller.”

One stumbling block is understood to be the large amount of tax Vodafone would have to pay should it sell all or part of its stake. The current ownership structure has allowed Vodafone to pay two large tax-free dividends from Verizon profits.