The exit of CEO Mark Hurd from HP as a result of the sex and expenses scandal has been great news for Michael Dell.
The two CEO's are natural rivals with Hurd being the clear winner. Shares of Dell are trading at just $13, a third of the $38 price they traded at the day Hurd took HP's reins. Under Hurd, HP jumped ahead of Dell in the personal computer market, it also is now the largest tech company by total revenue.
But it might be a while before Dell can take advantage Hurd's exit, according to Mark Margevicius, an analyst at tech research firm Gartner. Talking to Bloomburg Margevicius said Dell has a lot of work to do fixing his own business first. Margevicius said HP has surpassed its rival in managing its supply chain, improving its network of vendors, and offering a more diversified portfolio of PCs.
Dell's business is still reliant on corporations buying desktop PCs, but the deadly combination of Microsoft's Windows Vista debacle and the recession slowed those enterprise sales to a crawl. Things are getting better for Dell and many corporations to start replacing their old PCs.
Soft porn actress helped Dell's bottom line
Nick Farell
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