Shares of Platform Specialty Products Corp. spiked up 3.2% in afternoon trade Wednesday, after The Wall Street Journal reported that the company was in talks to sell its agricultural-chemicals business for about $3 billion to U.K.-based Wilmcote Holdings PLC Before the report, the stock had been up 0.9%. Including debt, the deal could be valued at $4 billion, the WSJ report said, citing people familiar with the matter. The deal, which could be announced this month, would pave the way for Platform Specialty to complete its previously announced plan to split its two divisions into distinct companies. Platform Specialty's stock has lost 2.9% over the past 12 months, while the S&P 500 has climbed 13.7%.