Report: Duke Energy courting Progress Energy - CharlotteObserver.com

"Progress Energy's stock got a positive bump Thursday following a Wall Street report saying the Raleigh-based power company is in preliminary merger talks with Charlotte-based Duke Energy.

The possible merger was first reported by DealReporter, a financial information service, then rebroadcast by Bloomberg News.

DealReporter cited an unnamed source saying there's preliminary interest on Duke's part but Progress won't play unless it's paid at least $47 a share.

Investors apparently responded to the cue, and Progress's stock inched up from $43.39 a share Wednesday to $43.90 a share Thursday. Just as telling: Progress stock, which is typically traded between 1.5 million and 2 million times a day, surged to a trading volume of about 6.5 million."