Asustek, Acer Would Gain From HP Spinoff of Unit, Barclays Says

Asustek Computer Inc. (2357) and Acer Inc. (2353) may benefit if Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) goes ahead with plans to spin off its personal-computer division, said Kirk Yang, an analyst at Barclays Plc.

Asian computer makers may increase market share as Hewlett- Packard and Dell Inc. (DELL), the industry’s top two producers, are “showing flat growth and putting less emphasis on the PC business,” Yang said in a note to clients today. Asustek “would be one of the major beneficiaries,” along with Acer, according to the note.

Hewlett-Packard, the world’s largest computer maker, announced a plan yesterday to overhaul its businesses, agreeing to buy Autonomy Corp. for $10.3 billion and split off its PC division.

Asustek was down 4.6 percent to NT$230 as of 10:44 a.m. in Taipei trading. Acer was trading at NT$30.25, down 2.1 percent.

Sales for the period ending in October will be $32.1 billion to $32.5 billion, Palo Alto, California-based Hewlett- Packard said yesterday. That missed the average $34 billion estimate of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Earnings excluding some items will be $1.12 to $1.16 a share, compared with analysts’ $1.31 average estimate.

To contact the reporter on this story: Naoko Fujimura in Tokyo at nfujimura@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Young-Sam Cho at ycho2@bloomberg.net