Twitter's stock surges in wake of Microsoft deal to buy LinkedIn

Shares of Twitter Inc. surged 4.7% in active premarket trade Monday, swinging to gains in the wake of Microsoft Corp.'s announcement that it was buying LinkedIn Corp. for a 50% premium. Volume of 1.4 million shares made it the fourth-most active stock ahead of the open. Twitter's stock was down about 0.4% just prior to Microsoft's announcement. Analysts have suggested recently that continued executive turnover and a lack of growth could push Twitter closer to a possible sale. The stock had tumbled 39% year to date through Friday, while the S&P 500 had gained 2.6%.

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