10 Potential Takeover Targets with Strong Price Momentum

In this article, we take a look at 10 Potential Takeover Targets with Strong Price Momentum.

Takeover speculation is getting more attention because the broader deal backdrop has improved, even if activity remains selective rather than indiscriminate. Reuters, citing LSEG data, reported that global M&A volume reached $4.6 trillion in 2025, up 49% from 2024, and that the first quarter of 2026 alone topped $1.2 trillion in deal value, up 26% from a year earlier.

Private capital also remains a meaningful force behind the theme. PitchBook said that closed-end private capital funds globally held $4.63 trillion in dry powder as of the end of the second quarter of 2025, while Reuters reported that bankers and M&A lawyers entered 2026 expecting private equity to remain active in larger transactions.

That backdrop has started to show up in stock prices recently. Brown-Forman rose nearly 15% after reports that Sazerac had approached the company while Pernod Ricard was already in talks, and Commvault jumped more than 17% after Reuters reported it was exploring a sale following takeover interest.

That helps explain why potential takeover targets are appearing across different industries rather than clustering in one corner of the market. In many cases, the momentum is not purely technical. It is being reinforced, at least partly, by credible strategic interest, strategic reviews, or the market’s attempt to price in optionality before any deal is signed.

Kritchanut/Shutterstock.com

Methodology

For this list, we identified potential takeover targets by combining two factors: credible merger or acquisition interest and sustained price momentum. Companies were selected based on recent reports of strategic reviews, takeover approaches, or activist-driven pressure to divest from sources such as Reuters and Bloomberg. Price momentum was assessed over a multi-week to multi-month period to avoid short-term volatility driven by unsubstantiated rumors. These stocks are also popular among Wall Street analysts and elite hedge funds.

Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 498.7% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 303 percentage points (see more details here).

10. Revolution Medicines, Inc. (NASDAQ:RVMD)

Revolution Medicines, Inc. (NASDAQ:RVMD) is one of the 10 potential takeover targets with strong price momentum. The appeal is not hard to see. The company is built around RAS-targeted oncology, and their daraxonrasib has become one of the most closely watched assets in that space.

The stock’s momentum has only strengthened the strategic case. Barron’s reported on April 13 that Revolution Medicines shares had already gained 164% over the prior year before jumping another 39% that day after new trial data. The catalyst was daraxonrasib’s pivotal Phase 3 RASolute 302 result announced on April 13, 2026. Reuters reported that the drug helped previously treated metastatic pancreatic cancer patients live a median of 13.2 months, compared with 6.7 months for standard chemotherapy, while also improving progression-free survival. RBC said the drug could eventually generate more than $5 billion in U.S. sales.

Daraxonrasib’s strategic value had already drawn takeover attention. On January 8, 2026, Reuters reported that Merck was in talks to buy Revolution Medicines in a deal that could value the company at $28 billion to $32 billion. Earlier, the Wall Street Journal had reported AbbVie was near a deal, though AbbVie denied it to Reuters the next day. Later in January, Reuters reported that Merck was no longer in talks, but said another buyer could still emerge.

Revolution Medicines, Inc. (NASDAQ:RVMD) is a late-stage clinical oncology company focused on developing targeted therapies for patients with RAS-addicted cancers.

9. Atkore Inc. (NYSE:ATKR)

Atkore Inc. (NYSE:ATKR) is one of the 10 potential takeover targets with strong price momentum. The latest consequential step came on April 8, 2026, when Atkore announced the sale of its HDPE pipe and conduit business to Infra Pipes. The company said the deal was part of its ongoing strategic review process and would sharpen its focus on key electrical product offerings, targeted customers, and strategic markets, while also improving metrics such as adjusted EBITDA margin and return on invested capital.

That move fits a broader cleanup story that can make the company easier to value and potentially easier to buy. Atkore manufactures electrical products for commercial, industrial, data center, telecommunications, and solar applications, which gives it exposure to several parts of the electrification buildout. In its fiscal first-quarter 2026 results released on February 3, the company reported net sales of $655.5 million, down 0.9% year over year, while electrical segment sales rose 0.9% to $469.6 million. Management also said the earlier divestiture of the Tectron mechanical tube product line was another action taken as part of its broader review of strategic alternatives.

The takeover angle itself has been live for months. In November 2025, Reuters reported that Atkore’s board and management were considering options, including a sale or merger, after activist pressure. No buyer for the whole company has been publicly identified since then, but the strategic review and asset sales suggest the company is still reshaping itself in a way that could support a deal.

Atkore Inc. (NYSE:ATKR) manufactures electrical products for commercial, industrial, data center, telecommunications, and solar applications.

8. OraSure Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:OSUR)

OraSure Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:OSUR) is one of the 10 potential takeover targets with strong price momentum. On March 17, 2026, Reuters reported that activist investor Altai Capital Management pushed the company to explore a sale, arguing that OraSure could fetch roughly double its current share price. Altai also pressed for board seats after nominating directors, escalating a campaign to force strategic change.

That pressure builds on an already active takeover backdrop. Reuters had earlier reported that healthcare entrepreneur Ron Zwanziger made an acquisition approach in 2025, which the company rejected, and later warned of a more adversarial path. The combination of a prior rejected bid and an ongoing activist campaign makes OraSure a live strategic situation rather than a speculative one.

The stock’s momentum reflects that shift. Shares were up about 35% year-to-date as of April 14 close, with insider buying also reported during that period, suggesting improving investor sentiment alongside the takeover narrative.

Fundamentally, OraSure operates in diagnostics and sample management, including infectious disease testing and molecular collection tools, areas that can attract strategic buyers looking to expand capabilities. The company said in mid-March that it is approaching a series of regulatory and commercial milestones, positioning itself at what it described as an “inflection point” even as activist pressure intensifies.

OraSure Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:OSUR) develops diagnostic tests and sample collection solutions for infectious diseases and other healthcare applications.

7. Qiagen N.V. (NYSE:QGEN)

Qiagen N.V. (NYSE:QGEN) is one of the 10 potential takeover targets with strong price momentum. The latest relevant development came on April 14, 2026, when QIAGEN said it was expanding into bloodstream infection syndromic testing with a new rapid QIAstat-Dx panel. The launch pushes the company into another clinically important diagnostics category and broadens the QIAstat-Dx menu beyond respiratory, gastrointestinal, and meningitis and encephalitis testing, reinforcing the strategic value of its diagnostics platform.

That helps explain why takeover interest resurfaced earlier this year. On January 20, 2026, Reuters reported that QIAGEN was weighing strategic options, including a potential sale, amid fresh takeover interest and had engaged advisers as its supervisory board considered preliminary interest from potential buyers, including several U.S. strategic firms. The market took the report seriously. Reuters said QIAGEN’s U.S.-listed shares rose more than 16% in afternoon trading on the news, giving the stock a clear takeover-driven momentum jolt.

What makes QIAGEN attractive is the combination of scale, installed diagnostics platforms, and an expanding product pipeline. In January, the company said its 2026 priorities include growth across five pillars, including syndromic testing, digital PCR, sample technologies, clinical genomics, and partnered companion diagnostics, while its investor materials highlight more than 500,000 customers and strong cash generation. No buyer has been publicly identified beyond reports of interest from possible suitors, but the combination of fresh product expansion and renewed strategic interest keeps QIAGEN firmly in the conversation.

Qiagen N.V. (NYSE:QGEN) is a molecular diagnostics and life sciences company that provides sample and assay technologies for research, clinical testing, and applied markets.

6. BlackLine, Inc. (NASDAQ:BL)

BlackLine, Inc. (NASDAQ:BL) is one of the 10 potential takeover targets with strong price momentum. On April 14, 2026, the company unveiled “Agentic Financial Operations,” a new operating model aimed at bringing more governance and trust to AI use in finance and accounting. The announcement matters because BlackLine is not just a niche accounting software vendor. It has a sizable installed base, more than 4,300 customers, and a platform built to automate and standardize finance workflows, which makes it strategically relevant to larger software and enterprise-platform buyers looking to deepen their office-of-the-CFO capabilities.

The takeover case has been live for months. On March 10, Reuters reported that BlackLine said its strategic committee could lay the groundwork for a potential merger or sale after reaching an agreement with activist Engaged Capital. Reuters also noted that SAP had offered nearly $4.5 billion for the company last year, but the offer was rebuffed. That history matters because it suggests BlackLine has already attracted credible buyer interest rather than just activist noise.

What keeps the company attractive is the combination of recurring enterprise software revenue, a recognizable finance-automation franchise, and a board process that is now explicitly empowered to evaluate strategic transactions. The stock has been volatile rather than cleanly trending one way, but the strategic review, prior SAP interest, and fresh AI positioning keep BlackLine in the takeover conversation.

BlackLine, Inc. (NASDAQ:BL) provides software that helps companies automate and manage accounting and finance operations.

Click to continue reading and see 5 Potential Takeover Targets with Strong Price Momentum.

Disclosure: None. Follow Insider Monkey on Google News.