Rumors that Amazon is interested in acquiring Peloton, which is up more than 20% in the day

According to the U.S. Stock Research Agency, the Zhitong Finance APP learned that on Friday, there were reports that Amazon (AMZN) met with consultants to discuss the acquisition of Peloton (PTON). Truist analyst Youssef Squali said the tech giant would reap many benefits if the deal is struck, including an upgrade to its Prime subscription service. The analyst gave Peloton a "hold" rating with a price target of $68.

According to Peloton, it has about 2.7 million fitness users, and Squali said that number could grow given that they may overlap with Prime users and Amazon's global distribution could expand Peloton's appeal.

Peloton could also help Amazon gain market share in the field of internet fitness, where Amazon's hardware business has been at or near breakeven for years, gaining greater scale and market share.

"Amazon's expertise in logistics and fulfillment can help solve the problems that plagued Peloton last year," Squali explains. "Peloton has built a strong distribution and delivery capability, but will benefit greatly from Amazon's expertise and breadth."

Youssef Squali also noted that while Nike (NKE) and Alphabet (GOOGL) also have the potential to acquire, Amazon and Apple (AAPL) are "more likely to acquire" Peloton.

Wedbush analyst Dan Ives, who leans more toward Apple, said Apple's acquisition of Peloton would be a major strategic move and facilitate the company's active health and fitness programs in the coming years.

Tom Nikic, another analyst at Wedbush, said that while Nike has a lot to commend, the possibility of acquiring Peloton is "not among them." The analyst doubts whether the deal will make strategic or financial sense, as Nike will have to take on huge losses that could erode the company's strong growth opportunities in its core business, so he believes the acquisition is expected to be unreasonable.

As of the U.S. stock close on Feb. 7, Peloton shares were up 20.93 percent at $29.75.