Hewlett-Packard

[OrcasIslandBound]

...and the BOD continues to squander huge $$$ on ceo pay, perks, and lawyers.

And $25,000,000 severance packages.

 

[ESRwannabe]

This has got to be the most hated stock I have ever seen. Everything I watch and everything I read about it is negative to the max!

The forward P/E is 4.6 now!

I'm up to 280 shares and plan to buy more as soon as I get paid for the month. Look at the numbers and forget the stupidity of the higher ups. This company is so oversold its hilarious.

I personally hope they will spin off the PC business even if it turns out to not be the best option financially. They are never going to be allowed to move into higher margins with that boat anchor dragging them down.

The MSM loves the story of PCs as a dying industry. I bet it sells a lot of advertising for them. The MSM also seems to have a very hard time understanding the difference between revenues and profits. They see the number of $40 billion revenue for PCs and completely overlook that it only brings in $2 billion in profit.

The MSM and the public are absolutely convinced that HP is a PC company when it only brings in around 2 billion of the 11.5 billion of profits. That is only 17%...

Now lets look at the statements made by Dell that the PC business is the driver for all of the other sales... If this were true then why is it that both Cisco and IBM sell more blade servers than Dell? Neither of them is stuck with a crappy PC business (low margins and tied to the walmart shopper economy).

Cisco entered the x86 blade server market in 2009... and they now have 9.4 percent of the market and Dell has 8.4 percent! IBM has around 20% and HP has around 50%.

If PCs create such a great synergy for up-selling servers then why did Cisco go from 0% in 2009 to beating Dell in 2011? lol

 

[clifp]

This has got to be the most hated stock I have ever seen. Everything I watch and everything I read about it is negative to the max!

The forward P/E is 4.6 now!

I'm up to 280 shares and plan to buy more as soon as I get paid for the month. Look at the numbers and forget the stupidity of the higher ups. This company is so oversold its hilarious.

Ok, at this price I have say it is looking a bit more interesting. I think my strategy will be to write a put at say $20/share. The Jan are ~1.70 but it is also tempting to take advantage of the volatility and write the Jan 2013 (16 month) which are selling for $3.80. The company has roughly $6/share in cash which means that that if the options get exercised I'll be buying the companies business for roughly $10/share. Although the HP Board is clearly capable of remarkable destruction of shareholder value and I wouldn't be at all amazed if HP's profits drop from $4/share to $1-$2 share during the CEO of the quarter circus. At $16.20 it will have a 3% yield and all have the satisfaction of owning a formerly great company at 1/3 price of just a few years ago.

 

[ERD50]

Ok, at this price I have say it is looking a bit more interesting. I think my strategy will be to write a put at say $20/share. The Jan are ~1.70 but it is also tempting to take advantage of the volatility and write the Jan 2013 (16 month) which are selling for $3.80. The company has roughly $6/share in cash which means that that if the options get exercised I'll be buying the companies business for roughly $10/share.

But don't they also have ~ $12/share of debt, so isn't that like negative $6 cash?

HPQ Key Statistics | Hewlett-Packard Company Common Stock - Yahoo! Finance

I recall a time when people were trying to figure the value of Apple (AAPL) adjusted for its then large (but not staggeringly large like today) cash holdings (and zero debt). But back then, they could get 4-5% on their cash, so you had to back the interest out of their income. It got interesting. IIRC, they were making more in interest for a time than they were from operations.

At any rate, this thread has motivated me and I sold a few SEPT $23 strike puts, and now sold $22 strike puts for OCT. Got a bit over $0.90 for each. I'm kind of ambivalent as to whether I get assigned or not, but I'll keep playing as long as the premiums are this high. I like to play the near month though - the premiums are relatively higher, and my crystal ball only has to look a month out.

-ERD50

 

[BigNick]

Another fine, family-run company that hired a succession of empty suits after the founders retired/passed away. The current guy at HP started this year saying how he was going to go after Apple in the consumer space and then within six months, it's all about corporate services. In other words, he doesn't have a clue and he's playing catch-up, but he can afford to because his salary and bonuses are nicely backed up by the cash cow which is their printer business.

I should have shorted Leo Apotheker when I wrote that.

 

[clifp]

But don't they also have ~ $12/share of debt, so isn't that like negative $6 cash?

HPQ Key Statistics | Hewlett-Packard Company Common Stock - Yahoo! Finance

I recall a time when people were trying to figure the value of Apple (AAPL) adjusted for its then large (but not staggeringly large like today) cash holdings (and zero debt). But back then, they could get 4-5% on their cash, so you had to back the interest out of their income. It got interesting. IIRC, they were making more in interest for a time than they were from operations.

At any rate, this thread has motivated me and I sold a few SEPT $23 strike puts, and now sold $22 strike puts for OCT. Got a bit over $0.90 for each. I'm kind of ambivalent as to whether I get assigned or not, but I'll keep playing as long as the premiums are this high. I like to play the near month though - the premiums are relatively higher, and my crystal ball only has to look a month out.

-ERD50

Ah you are right, the old HP had minimal debt so I didn't even occur to me to look for it. -$6 in cash makes it look less interesting as long term holding. I generally like to write puts for stocks that I am happy holding at the exercise price. At $20+ dollars I am not as thrilled owning HP in the long term, much less the short term. The short term premium is huge. Those premiums are crazy high because of the huge uncertainty of both the market and the company. I'm going to have to put my thinking cap on.

 

[Nords]

Those premiums are crazy high because of the huge uncertainty of both the market and the company. I'm going to have to put my thinking cap on.

I've been applying the same logic to selling Berkshire Hathaway puts. We'll have to talk more about this!

 

[arebelspy]

This has got to be the most hated stock I have ever seen. Everything I watch and everything I read about it is negative to the max!

The forward P/E is 4.6 now!

I'm up to 280 shares and plan to buy more as soon as I get paid for the month. Look at the numbers and forget the stupidity of the higher ups. This company is so oversold its hilarious.

I think similar logic applied to Nokia, yet the stupidity of the higher higher ups couldn't be forgotten, and it's continued to fall...

 

[OrcasIslandBound]

Sometimes, a picture is worth lots of words... (peak $39.90 10/26/2007)

 

[BUM]

I'm a [-]sucker[/-] sharp-eyed investor, and when I saw HP take a 20% hit, its go time. I bought at about 24 then [-]got cold feet[/-] strategically sold shortly thereafter at around 26.

 

[ESRwannabe]

So, HP ended up keeping the PC business after all. Probably a good idea. Now I guess figuring out what to do with WebOS is next.

All told I bought 300 shares at a cost of $7,384.60. So an average cost of $24.62 per share. I'm up about $1,000 so far. I think it is possible I could end up about doubling my money within the next five years and I'll make 2% per year in dividends while I wait.



I'm back to putting money into VGK the Vanguard European Index ETF for the rest of the year. I have put in about $95k and would like to get that to $100k. My div yield based on many years of past data will probably be around 4.5%.

After that I'll start looking at individual stocks again. Probably something in the financial sector. Maybe BlackRock BLK.

 

[OrcasIslandBound]

Anyone considering owning HP stock might read this article:

How Hewlett-Packard lost its way - Fortune Tech

called
How Hewlett-Packard lost its way

May 8, 2012: 5:00 AM ET Léo Apotheker's disastrous tenure as HP's CEO revealed a dysfunctional company struggling for direction after a decade of missteps and scandals. Can his replacement, Meg Whitman, fix the tech giant?

By James Bandler with Doris Burke

 

[Ed_The_Gypsy]

I do not like tech stocks. Never have. Now if something like cold fusion comes up, I might consider but until then, it is oil for me.

 

[clifp]

Anyone considering owning HP stock might read this article:

How Hewlett-Packard lost its way - Fortune Tech

called
How Hewlett-Packard lost its way

May 8, 2012: 5:00 AM ET Léo Apotheker's disastrous tenure as HP's CEO revealed a dysfunctional company struggling for direction after a decade of missteps and scandals. Can his replacement, Meg Whitman, fix the tech giant?

By James Bandler with Doris Burke

Wow just wow. A 1/2 dozen scandals ago, a SV journalist had a headline that read "The HP boardroom is powered entirely by Bill and Dave spinning in their graves". I am pretty sure the entire Silicon Valley can be powered by their spinning now.

What ever my complaints about the CEO that followed Andy Grove at Intel they pale in comparison.

 

[ESRwannabe]

So, I have 620 shares of HPQ now and plan to have 1,000 shares by the end of the year. I feel quite good about the investment and think the shares are cheap. They could always go lower of course.

I did get VGK, the vanguard europe etf, up to $100k principal invested. So, I have been working on other things like HPQ, JNJ, and PG. I want to get HPQ to 1,000 shares and then do likewise for JNJ. That's the plan for this year.

If I can remember to do so I'll check in again every year and post how it is going.

The recent layoff rumor which, I'm sure will be confirmed this wednesday, will probably be long term beneficial. I never like reading about layoffs, but it is what it is. The rumors that I have seen are that the money free'd up from the layoffs will go towards improving sales, via the channel, and investments in R&D.

I think there are a lot of promising opportunities for R&D in particular with: hpcloud.com, autonomy.com, and vertica.com.

 

[Hamlet]

Cheap is only good if you're buying something of value.

What parts of HPQ's business do you like from an investment standpoint?

What parts of HPQ's business do you think will make more money in the future?

The only business they seem to have a leadership role in is printing, which is a shrinking business.

So, I have 620 shares of HPQ now and plan to have 1,000 shares by the end of the year. I feel quite good about the investment and think the shares are cheap. They could always go lower of course.

 

[Lisa99]

HP is not just a printer or PC company any longer. A significant chunk of revenue now comes from IT services (read outsourcing) via the Electronic Data Systems acquisition. Be sure you understand performance of the Enterprise Services part of the business when making your investing decision.

 

[Hamlet]

I consider them an "also-ran" in that business.

IBM is really the leader of that business.

HP is not just a printer or PC company any longer. A significant chunk of revenue now comes from IT services (read outsourcing) via the Electronic Data Systems acquisition. Be sure you understand performance of the Enterprise Services part of the business when making your investing decision.

 

[OrcasIslandBound]

The trend continues...

IBM vs. NOK, HPQ and RIMM

 

[OrcasIslandBound]

The trend continues...

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

This is a dead company that just hasn't stopped moving yet. Thats what happens when you have a series of ceo's who destroy the culture and ruin the business.

 

[ESRwannabe]

You guys aren't very patient are you?

I got HPQ up to 1,000 shares as planned. My average cost basis is around $21.

Let's see what happens in five years.

I'm now working on JNJ, PG, and JPM. Getting them all to 200 shares each. So far I have 160 shares of JNJ and PG, and 90 of JPM.

 

[audreyh1]

Anyone considering owning HP stock might read this article:

How Hewlett-Packard lost its way - Fortune Tech

called
How Hewlett-Packard lost its way

May 8, 2012: 5:00 AM ET Léo Apotheker's disastrous tenure as HP's CEO revealed a dysfunctional company struggling for direction after a decade of missteps and scandals. Can his replacement, Meg Whitman, fix the tech giant?

By James Bandler with Doris Burke

Thanks swifter, that was a fascinating read. Depressing too!

HP ceased being "HP" when they spun off Agilent. Agilent should have kept the HP name (since they were the true heirs of Bill and Dave in their garage startup), and they should have used the fancy high-dollar name for the resulting computer company. Completely different business than what Bill and Dave started.

 

[NW-Bound]

I have never worked at or with the old HP, but have used a lot of their lab equipment (who hasn't?), and have utmost respect for their designers. So, it broke my heart to see Agilent being spun-off, but as it turned out, that might be better for Agilent engineers. I have not followed Agilent, but just checked its stock price as an indication of its finance. A is doing a lot better than HPQ.

And by the way, I thought Carly Fiorina was the initiator of the split, but learned that it was Lew Platt who started it. I could be too sentimental, but felt sad that so many well-known engineering and aerospace corps with a proud tradition have disappeared over the years, or have shrunken to a pitiful fraction of their old selves.

 

[JoeWras]

I know it is time to retire when the world has turned upside down from when I was in college.

Back then, every engineer wanted to work at HP, IBM or Motorola. The risk takers were thinking Apple or Microsoft in the "cool" home computer area. The visionaries were looking way beyond that into companies we never heard of like Sun or Dell.

My, my what has happened since? HP and Mot have nearly died, or at least have had chunks spun off. IBM -- to their credit -- has become a different company. A painful process, for those who worked there, for sure, but they are alive and well.

MSFT and DELL exploded, and then leveled off or crashed since. Sun exploded, leveled, crashed and was bought by Oracle. Apple? You know their story. Wow, wow, wow.

My take on all this? I w*rk in technology, but I have found that has made me an absolute lousy stock picker in tech. I also have zero insight into the tech sector in general. Being in it clouds my vision more than anything.

Therefore, I've completely stopped picking tech stocks and don't participate. The few individual stocks I play with are outside of tech, and I've done much better with those than I ever did with tech.

HP is a great example of this. They had everything going for them, like IBM, and you'd think they were bulletproof. Now they are competing against IBM, who is way ahead. Personally, I would stay away. I don't like what I'm seeing. But again, I have zero luck with knowing tech companies.