UK's SSP Group jumps on report Irenic trying to drum up take-private interest
** Shares of cafe and restaurant chain operator SSP Group SSPG.L rise 9.9% to 171.6p ** Stock second-highest percentage gainer on the FTSE mid-cap index .FTMC ** Activist hedge fund Irenic Capital Management is trying to drum up interest in a take-private deal for the company, according to FT report ** The report also mentions Irenic owns roughly 3% of SSP's stock ** As of last close, stock has declined over 13.5% YTD (Reporting by Atharva Singh in Bengaluru) ((Atharva.singh@thomsonreuters.com))