Twitter's value may be higher than $11 billion, report says

There has always been a lot of speculation about what Twitter is really worth, and a new report suggests the site could currently be valued as higher than $11 billion as it prepares to go public next year.

Forbes reported today that financial researcher Greencrest is basing its rough valuation of $11 billion on trading in secondary markets and says part of the current higher value is due to speculation that Apple is interested in acquiring Twitter.

Even if there is no acquisition, Twitter's higher value still makes sense, Greencrest said, according to Forbes, "as growth in users and new monetization efforts are both yielding fruit and pointing toward a good 2013 for Twitter."

Twitter's valuation has shifted a bit over the past couple years. A new round of funding in 2011 pegged the company at $8 billion, and its value rose to $10 billion on secondary markets, according to The Guardian, before dropping a bit following Facebook's dismal IPO in 2012.

Greencrest believes Twitter will start preparing this year for an IPO in 2014.

Twitter co-founder and Chairman Jack Dorsey has long said the company will go public when it feels it's ready. He has noted in interviews many times that Twitter doesn't think of an IPO as an exit or a goal, but as more of a milestone.

We've contacted Apple and Twitter and will update this story when we hear back.