Roku shares rocketed to a 4-year high on Friday after word emerged that the streaming company is in talks to sell itself to an unnamed media company.
The stock surged 20% to close at $143.66, rising another fraction in after-hours trading, after Bloomberg reported that a media company had held acquisition talks with Roku. Reuters later also reported on the talks, but said Roku was also exploring alternatives like a private investment in public equity, or PIPE, transaction.
A Roku spokesperson did not have any immediate comment when contacted by Deadline.
Roku was founded in 2002 by Anthony Wood, who still runs the company as CEO. Wood had devised the streaming device company while working at Netflix before pursuing it as an unaffiliated start-up with the blessing of Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings. The company has gone on to become a major force in streaming, through its connected devices as well as a large installed base in smart-TVs thanks to license deals with many top manufacturers.
As its connectivity business has flourished, the company has also developed one of the largest free, ad-supported outlets in streaming, the Roku Channel. Original films and series have also been produced for the Roku Channel, and the company has also ventured into live sports. It also has entered the pay-TV sector via the acquisition of Frndly TV and also launched subscription streamer Howdy in 2025. Earlier this year, Roku announced it had passed 100 million households.
The company has long been assumed to be an acquisition target, with potential suitors including Amazon or ad tech firms like The Trade Desk given Roku’s steady growth in advertising. One M&A deal close to Roku’s neighborhood happened in when Vizio, one of the leading smart-TV makers in North America, was acquired by Walmart. Roku’s healthy market value of more than $19 billion has complicated the notion of an acquisition, which would have been more feasible at an earlier stage in its development.
