Pandora Shares On Track To Close At 14-month Low Despite On-going M&A, Investment Speculation

Shares of Pandora Media Inc. continued their second straight day of declines, falling more than 5% intraday on Wednesday after closing down nearly 8% on Tuesday. Pandora shares were on track to close at their lowest levels in 14 months. The selloff could make the internet radio streaming company more of an acquisition target. For about a year Liberty Media Corp.-owned satellite radio company Sirius XM had been toying with the idea of making a bid for Pandora. Liberty Media Chief Executive Greg Maffei was on record telling investors he thought Pandora was overvalued and that he'd be more likely to make a move for the company if it were trading at $10 a share. Pandora shares are currently trading at a little more than $8 per share. In early May, Pandora said it had sealed a $150 million investment from private-equity firm KKR, but that it would first explore strategic alternatives before closing the investment. Thursday is the first potential day Pandora could close that investment, according to Macquarie Research analyst Amy Yong. Earlier this week, Verizon said it was considering investing $100 million in Pandora if the music streamer failed to reach a deal with SiriusXM this week. Pandora shares have dropped more than 36% in the year to date, while the S&P 500 index has gained more than 8%.