HP Increases Offer for 3Par to $33, Trumping Dell
3Par Determines Revised HP Proposal Is Superior
Tony Avelar/Bloomberg
An employee works on 3Par Inc. InServ T-class data storage servers at the company's headquarters in Fremont, California.
An employee works on 3Par Inc. InServ T-class data storage servers at the company's headquarters in Fremont, California. Photographer: Tony Avelar/Bloomberg
Hewlett-Packard Co. increased its offer for 3Par Inc. to $33 a share, topping Dell Inc.’s new $32 proposal and stretching the public bidding war for the data- storage supplier into its 18th day.
HP’s offer is a “superior proposal,” 3Par said today in a statement. The Fremont, California-based company said it notified Dell of its intention to terminate their merger agreement.
HP, the world’s largest PC maker, and Dell, which is No. 3, are battling to add 3Par’s data-center products that would help them compete with storage leaders like EMC Corp. Dell first offered $18 a share on Aug. 16 and has matched or exceeded subsequent proposals from HP. 3Par rose as high as $33.70 in New York trading, a sign investors may expect the bidding to go higher.
HP’s offer is more than three times the $9.65 closing price for 3Par stock on Aug. 13, before Dell’s initial bid was made public. The premium reflects a growing urgency for the computer makers to use acquisitions to fuel growth and underscores the dearth of affordable runners up capable of helping them vie with EMC.
David Frink, a spokesman for Round Rock, Texas-based Dell, and Gina Tyler, a spokeswoman for HP, didn’t immediately return voice mails today.
3Par also said that Dell’s latest offer included an increased termination fee of $92 million if 3Par accepts a different offer.
3Par gained $1.49, or 4.6 percent, to $33.57 at 9:38 a.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. HP, based in Palo Alto, California, rose 2 cents to $39.23. Dell dropped 16 cents to $11.96 on the Nasdaq Stock Market.
To contact the reporters on this story: Aaron Ricadela in San Francisco at aricadela@bloomberg.net
Rate These Stories
Rate this Page