Ralf, yes DEC is a company to be proud of with respect to their customer base, product offerings, service and technology.
I suspect Palmer's money will come from his stock options, bonus payments, and other financial agreements he has with DEC. It's the old story, the guys on top also do well in these deals. The working guys get the short end of the stick.
CPQ is essentially a box maker and sells PC's and servers. I think they wanted DEC for its corporate accounts, service division, and technical capabilities. However, I don't know what CPQ will do with the existing products such as; alpha, strongarm, VMS, etc.
In my opinion, CPQ is getting DEC for a steal....$30/share and 0.945 CPQ shares for each DEC share. After you consider the cash that DEC has, and will belong to CPQ when the deal closes, CPQ is really paying much less for DEC and the deal would suggest.
Although CPQ is currently experiencing some problems with inventory, transition to a built-to-order company, and the PC price war, I still think they are a good company with good management.
Sure hope you and your associates do well during the transition period and thereafter.
Stock Bull
PS: Have you ever come across reel-to-reel tape drives known as the TU 77 and TU 78??? |
