Check Point Software in initial talks to buy CyberArk: newspaper

TEL AVIV (Reuters) - Israel cyber security firm Check Point Software Technologies (CHKP.O) is in initial talks to buy smaller provider CyberArk Software (CYBR.O), TheMarker financial newspaper reported on Wednesday.

Shares in CyberArk listed on the Nasdaq have fallen 50 percent from a high of $76.35 hit in June 2015. It currently has a market capitalization of $1.2 billion.

Officials at CyberArk and Check Point declined to comment on the report.

If a deal is completed, it would be Check Point's largest acquisition to date.

Last year it purchased two small Israeli companies - cyber security start-up Hyperwise and Lacoon Mobile Security to help prevent cyber attacks on mobile phones.

Check Point, with a market cap of $14.2 billion, had $3.6 billion in cash as of the third quarter of 2015. It is one of the world's largest cyber security firms and pioneered the computer firewall two decades ago.

(Reporting by Tova Cohen; editing by Jason Neely)