Merlin shares rise on SeaWorld deal talk

Merlin Entertainments shares were top of the London leaderboard on Thursday following a report that it was in talks with marine park operator SeaWorld Entertainment about a potential deal.

Merlin, which runs Sea Life centres and Legoland parks around the world, was reported to be interested in buying SeaWorld's Busch Gardens theme parks.

While the UK-based company has approached SeaWorld about just buying Busch Gardens, Reuters reported, the Florida-based group preferred to sell itself whole and has received interest from other parties.