More Palm sale talk

The same blog that stirred up speculation last month regarding a possible sale of Palm is at it again.

This time around, the site is offering more details on a possible deal for the company as well as a possible closing date. Unstrung cites an unnamed source that names two private equity firms, Texas Pacific Group and Silver Lake Partners, as potential buyers. The source also said the world's top two handset makers, Nokia and Motorola, are battling for the chance to acquire the Treo maker, which would make both instant contenders with Research in Motion in the North American enterprise market.

Unstrung is also reporting that Morgan Stanley wants to close the sale by the March 22, the same day Palm will report its quarterly earnings. Nokia is said to be considering a bid for $19 to $20 per share, according to the unidentified source. Neither Palm, Nokia nor Motorola commented on Unstrung's sale speculations.

Palm's stock closed Monday at $18.14, up 32 cents for the day. The stock price has climbed more than 20 percent since January as the Palm sale rumor mill has cranked into high gear.

Not that this is the first time we've heard this kind of rumor. Speculation surrounding a possible sale of the original smartphone maker has practically become a bi-annual event.

Other analysts have said a sale seems less likely now and that Palm's strategy and brand aren't necessarily a good fit for Nokia or Motorola. In an interview earlier this month with the blog Palm Addicts, Palm founder Jeff Hawkins seemed to pooh-pooh an impending sale. Saying Palm is the healthiest it's been in "a long, long time," Hawkins also repeatedly said "we finally feel like we have control of our destiny back in our hands again."

Though he didn't exactly deny it outright (other than to say that "90 percent of the time there isn't a shred of evidence to those rumors"), a sale would most likely snatch that sought-after control away again. Could this rumor be one of the 10 percent that's true? Stay tuned.