Mobile Services Firm iPass Jumps on Takeover Talk (IPAS)

iPass Inc. (NASDAQ: IPAS), a supplier of mobile services like virtual private networking to enterprise customers, is seeing its stock jump following a note from dealReporter that the company “could be up for sale.” iPass had a market cap of about $160 million, $25 million in cash, and no debt at the end of December.

Secure mobile network access should continue to be in demand at large enterprises as more smartphones and tablets are incorporated into a business’s network. That’s good for companies like iPass, which would benefit from being part of a mobile carrier or enterprise software company looking to offer more a more complete package for corporate customers..

Shares of iPass are up nearly 6% at $2.65 after posting a new 52-week high of $2.69 earlier. The stock’s 52-week low is $1.11.