E-Trade’s Up On Report Capital One Considered Bid

Shares of E-Trade Financial (ETFC) rose 1.2% today and are up slightly in after-hours following a report that the online broker was pursued by Capital One Financial (COF) last fall, according to Dow Jones Newswire.

While a formal bid never materialized, the discussions apparently inspired hedge fund manager Ken Griffin — who’s on ETFC’s board — to push the firm to sell itself.

Griffin is founder and CEO of Citadel LLC, E-Trade’s largest shareholder. Last week, a filing revealed his displeasure at the way E-Trade’s being managed. The company has rejected Griffin’s demands that it look for new ownership. At the same time, E-Trade has agreed to hire Morgan Stanley (MS) to “conduct another broad review of strategic strategies.”