Private Equity, others sniffing around the Palm tree

NYT: Palm Takeover Expected This Week: Report
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Palm Inc. (PALM.O) could be sold for at least $20 per share this week, and private equity firm Texas Pacific Group and at least three other bidders are interested, according to unnamed sources cited by technology news Web site Unstrung.com.
Texas Pacific declined to comment. A spokeswoman for Sunnyvale, California-based Palm, which makes the Treo smartphone, was not immediately available.
Sources have previously told Reuters that Palm hired Morgan Stanley to pursue a buyer.
Other bidders may include Nokia (NOK1V.HE) or Motorola Inc. (MOT.N), the site said. It also said there was speculation that private equity firm Silver Lake was interested in Palm.
``We are not commenting on rumors,'' said Nokia spokeswoman Arja Suominen.
A spokesman for Silver Lake was not immediately available for comment. Motorola was also not immediately available.
The site said that Morgan Stanley wanted to wrap up a deal by Thursday.
Palm shares were up nearly 5 percent at $19.02 in premarket trading after closing on Monday at $18.14 on Nasdaq.

So what makes the most sense, for Palm to be absorbed by a cellular company, or by a PE group that will tinker with it, and then sell it on to a cellular company?

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