Clear Channel stock up, but deal close not imminent: source

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Shares of U.S. radio operator Clear Channel Communications Inc (CCU.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) jumped on Tuesday on a rumor that the $20 billion buyout of the company was about to close, although a source familiar with the situation believed completion was not imminent.

Clear Channel's stock has been volatile in recent months as a number of other leveraged buyouts collapsed amid the credit crunch.

It has been trading significantly below the $39.20 a share that private equity firms Thomas H. Lee Partners and Bain Capital Partners LLC agreed to pay last year, on fears the deal could also be in jeopardy.

Clear Channel's stock was 8 percent higher Tuesday at $34.89, partly due to talk in the market that the deal was about to close, a trader who declined to be named, said.

However, a source familiar with the situation believed that the deal was not imminently about to close, although they believed the private equity buyers were still behind the deal.

(Reporting by Megan Davies, editing by Maureen Bavdek)