Ameritrade, E-Trade shares rise

Shares of TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. and E-Trade Financial Corp. each rose Wednesday after a published report said the online brokers have been discussing a possible combination.

The talks have been going on for weeks and currently are focused on making sure both companies agree on strategy, but the companies aren't yet close to a deal, The Wall Street Journal reported in Wednesday's edition.

The newspaper cited unnamed people familiar with the matter.

TD Ameritrade shares rose 81 cents, or nearly 5 percent, to $17.16 in morning trading Wednesday while E-Trade shares rose 45 cents, or 2.8 percent, to $16.02.

A spokeswoman for E-Trade told the newspaper the firm's management team believes there is "tremendous value in consolidation that aligns business strategy and operational synergies and will do what is in the best interest of its customers." An Ameritrade spokeswoman told the paper, "We have talked and continue to talk to peers in the industry."

The companies previously have discussed an alliance but never reached a deal. This time, however, there is the added pressure of two hedge funds with big stakes in Ameritrade that have publicly urged the two companies to talk.

Jana Partners LLC and S.A.C. Capital Advisors, which claim to collectively own 8.4 percent of Ameritrade shares, have been urging Ameritrade to join forces with a major competitor such as E-Trade or Charles Schwab Corp. in the interests of the majority of shareholders.

They say Ameritrade's largest shareholder, Toronto-Dominion Bank, has undermined merger talks because it might diminish the bank's roughly 40 percent stake in Ameritrade.

Toronto-Dominion officials have denied any conflict of interest.