Dell May Drop Out of 3Par Bidding War, Analysts Say

PC maker Dell Inc (DELL) may drop out of the bidding war with technology company Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) for data storage company 3PAR Inc (PAR) as the bids move out of its price range, analysts say.

According to a survey of eight technology investors and analysts carried out by Reuters, most market players expect Dell to either drop out of the bidding war now or to do so after topping HP's latest offer by a few dollars.

Dell has until Wednesday to match HP's $2 billion offer for 3Par, which would help Dell expand into enterprise technology services.

HP's larger global sales force and larger annual revenue, which is more than twice as large as Dell's, give it the advantage, the analysts said.

"It's hard to compete with HP," Peter Bell of venture capital firm Highland Capital Partners told Reuters. "They've got the bigger balance sheet."

HP's bid was the latest in a week-long exchange of rising offers, and the company could go higher still, Reuters reported.