Shares in Avanti Communications (AVN) soared by more than half in morning trading on reports that Inmarsat (ISAT) expressed interest in taking over its fellow satellite-communications group as recently as last Wednesday. The purported bid of 140p a share valued Avanti at more than five times its current market cap. However, Inmarsat issued a statement on Monday that it wasn't considering a bid for Avanti, ruling out an offer for the near future. Our chart shows the rally in both companies' share prices; in Inmarsat's case, the surge followed a resilient set of first-half results.