Square Inc.
SQ, -8.44% shares are off 9% in Friday trading after a Wall Street Journal report said that the company was in talks with Credit Karma Inc. about
acquiring the company's tax-preparation business. For Credit Karma, the move would be an attempt to stave off antitrust concerns as the company is in the process of merging with Intuit Inc.
INTU, -2.37%, which offers TurboTax, the WSJ report said. An acquisition of the tax-prep business could allow Square to further build out its Cash App platform, which lets consumers send money to friends and conduct equity trading, among other things. The WSJ report, which cited multiple unnamed sources, said that the purchase price for the potential deal was unknown. A Square spokeswoman said that the company doesn't comment "on rumors or speculation." Square shares have gained 147% so far this year as the S&P 500
SPX, -1.22% has risen just 0.4%.