Lotus Development Stock Keeps Rising

Lotus Development Corp. stock rose again Wednesday as Wall Street continued to wonder if someone will counter IBM’s $3.3 billion hostile takeover bid for the software company.

Lotus shares rose 56 cents to $62.37 on the Nasdaq Stock Market. IBM was down $1.50 at $89.87 on the New York Stock Exchange.

Neither company had anything new to say about the buyout offer, which International Business Machines Corp. launched Monday.

“Both sides are marshaling their troops. Lotus is trying to figure out what to do,” said Michael Geran, an analyst at Pershing & Co. in Jersey City, N.J. “Things don’t happen overnight in situations like this.”

If it is consummated, the deal would be the largest acquisition in the software business. It is also IBM’s first hostile takeover attempt.