Manic Merger Monday Updated (HPQ, DELL, PAR)

This story updates the previous story on the 3Par acquisition news. The mergers keep coming, but now companies are bidding on the same targets. Hewlett-Packard HPQ has decided to bid for 3Par PAR at $24 per share, just days after Dell DELL decided to offer $18 per share for the company. Shares are currently trading at $25.25 in early Monday trading, suggesting that perhaps Dell may come back with a higher offer, and turn this into a bidding war. While this deal seems to be a strategic acquisition for either HP or Dell, the price is not suggesting so. Dell was going to pay 72 times earnings for 3Par, hardly cheap in this environment. HP has come out and topped that 72 times earnings number, by offering 100 times earnings. Investors would have to think this deal will eventually be accretive to earnings, but no one knows for sure when. This is an astronomical multiple and it brings back memories of the dot com boom when companies routinely sold for multiples like this. 3PAR Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides utility storage systems in the United States and internationally. It competes with companies such as EMC EMC and NetApp NTAP. Shares of Dell are higher on this news at investors did not like the fact that Dell was paying such a high multiple. Investors are having the exact opposite reaction to HP, sending shares down on concerns the company is overpaying. The clear winner on this manic Monday? 3Par shareholders. Merger Monday continues to roll on. Ultimately, it looks like Dell or perhaps another bidder will come in for 3Par as companies look to use cash, and not stock for acquisitions. Stay tuned. This one will definitely keep getting more and more interesting as the process rolls on. You Can't Afford Miss To Out On These Money Making Trading Ideas.