NEW YORK (Dow Jones) – Sybase Inc. (SY) shares leapt to a new high late Wednesday afternoon on a report the technology company is near a deal to be bought out by a German tech giant.

Bloomberg reported that software company SAP AG (SAP) is close to buying Sybase for about $6 billion. The report cited two people familiar with the talks and said a deal could come as soon as Wednesday or fall apart.

Representatives of Sybase, a maker of databases and products that manage mobile-phone systems, declined to comment on the report, while SAP wasn’t immediately available for comment.

Sybase shares initially climbed more than 59% to $66, and volume soared to more than 13 times the typical amount after trading on very light volume for much of the day. The shares ended the session up 35% at $14.57. The $66 was an all-time high.

Before reports of the talks broke Wednesday, Sybase shares had slid 4.2% in 2010. While the company has been posting strong results, investors have been worried about its conservative revenue guidance.

SAP’s American Depositary shares dropped when the news came out, and closed off 1.5% at $44.70.

Sybase’s market capitalization is about $3.6 billion, while SAP carries a hefty weight of $54 billion.

Caris & Co. analyst Curtis Shauger said he hasn’t heard anything to substantiate the speculation, but for the stock to be moving this much, he would assume there’s something behind the talk.

Sybase partners with many large companies and has provided SAP with various technologies. In March, the two companies announced technology for mobile workers to carry out business and customer relationship management processes via Apple Inc.’s (AAPL) iPhone and Microsoft Inc.’s (MSFT) Windows Mobile.

SAP, meanwhile, has long been a leader in the $67 billion market for enterprise software, but the global economic downturn, intense competition and the fast-evolving business software field have threatened to crimp its growth.

Unlike its rival Oracle Corp. (ORCL), SAP has tried to grow by developing its own products, especially in the growing area of software as a service, where Salesforce.com Inc. (CRM) has shown there is a big market to be had selling to small to medium businesses.

But SAP said earlier this year it plans to make more acquisitions. Last month, SAP said it will buy TechniData AG–a provider of product safety and environmental, health and safety solutions–to expand its product portfolio and market sustainability. Like Sybase, TechniData has been a partner of SAP in the past.

ThinkEquity analyst Daniel Cummins said he had been hearing for a while that a takeover of Sybase is possible because companies trying to compete with moves by the likes of Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) and Oracle Inc. (ORCL) would have to acquire middle-of-the-road tech companies.

“There are a number of companies that are going to go shopping for middleware to compete,” Cummins said.

He said the rumored bid “does not seem audacious” and said one reason is Sybase’s management is strong and could be valuable, adding “Sybase is a really good established franchise.”

Still, he cautioned that SAP doesn’t have much experience in financial services, which could make any union tricky in some ways.

Analysts said it’s too soon to speculate on whether a SAP offer for Sybase would spark a bidding war.

“Never say never,” said Cross Research’s Shannon Cross, but she noted that recent deals in the tech space, like Hewlett-Packard Co.’s (HPQ) offer for Palm Inc. (PALM), haven’t brought on competitive bids.

-By David Benoit, Shara Tibken and Jennifer Cummings, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2458; david.benoit@dowjones.com

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