Hewlett-Packard Co. made several announcements Thursday:
? It will discontinue its TouchPad tablet computer and HP-branded smartphones, none of which sold well in a market crowded with the iPad, the iPhone and devices running Google’s Android system. As for the underlying webOS software, HP will “explore options to optimize the value.”
? It is considering selling or spinning off its PC division, much as rival IBM Corp. did in 2005.
? It plans to buy Autonomy Corp., a U.K. business software maker, for about $10 billion, ranking the deal among HP’s biggest. That expands HP’s offerings in software and services, allowing it to compete better with IBM in those areas.
? HP’s net income increased in the fiscal third quarter, which ended July 31, but it reported an earnings outlook for the current period that was lower than expected.
? On a day the broader market fell, HP’s stock dropped 6 percent in regular trading and another 10 percent after the close of market.
