HP Inc.

HP Inc. is an American multinational information technology company headquartered in Palo Alto, California, that develops personal computers (PCs), printers and related supplies, as well as 3D printing services. It was formed on November 1, 2015, as the legal successor of the original Hewlett-Packard after the company's enterprise product and business services divisions were spun off as a new publicly traded company, Hewlett Packard Enterprise.

HP is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the S&P 500 Index. As of 2024, it is the world's second-largest personal computer vendor by unit sales after Lenovo and ahead of Dell. In the 2023 Fortune 500 list, HP is ranked 63rd-largest United States corporation by total revenue.

History

Hewlett-Packard was founded in 1939 by Bill Hewlett and David Packard, who both graduated with degrees in electrical engineering from Stanford University in 1935. The company started off in the HP Garage in Palo Alto, California. On November 1, 2015, Hewlett-Packard was split into two companies. Its personal computer and printer businesses became HP Inc., while its enterprise business became Hewlett Packard Enterprise. The split was structured so that Hewlett-Packard changed its name to HP Inc. and spun off Hewlett Packard Enterprise as a new publicly traded company. HP Inc. retains Hewlett-Packard's pre-2015 stock price history and its former stock ticker symbol, HPQ, while Hewlett Packard Enterprise trades under its own symbol, HPE.

As HP Inc.

In May 2016, HP introduced a new PC gaming sub-brand known as Omen (reusing trademarks associated with VoodooPC), including gaming laptops and desktops (with the latter offering options such as CPU water cooling and Nvidia's GTX 1080 graphics, and promoted as VR-ready), and other accessories (such as monitors) designed to cater to the market.

In May and August 2016, certain assets were sold to OpenText, including TeamSite and Exstream.

In November 2017, HP acquired Samsung Electronics' printer division for $1.05 billion.

In February 2021, HP announced its acquisition of Kingston's gaming division HyperX for $425 million. The deal only includes computer peripherals branded as HyperX, not memory or storage. The sale was completed in June 2021.

In February 2022, HP announced it had acquired the Edinburgh-based packaging development company, Choose Packaging, in an effort to strengthen its capabilities in the sustainable packaging vertical.

In March 2022, HP announced the acquisition of the California-headquartered communications software and hardware provider Poly Inc. in an all-cash transaction. HP said the cash amount agreed was $40 per share, which implied a total enterprise value of $3.3bn, inclusive Poly's net debts.

Attempted merger with Xerox

On November 5, 2019, The Wall Street Journal reported that print and digital document company Xerox was contemplating acquiring HP. The company unanimously rejected two unsolicited offers, including a cash-and-stock offer at $22 per-share. HP stated that there was "uncertainty regarding Xerox’s ability to raise the cash portion of the proposed consideration" (especially given that Xerox is a smaller company in terms of market cap than HP), and noted the company's aggressiveness. On November 26, 2019, Xerox issued a public letter defending allegations by HP that its offer was "uncertain" and "highly conditional", and declared its intent to "engage directly with HP shareholders to solicit their support in urging the HP Board to do the right thing and pursue this compelling opportunity."

Xerox stated in January 2020 that it would propose the replacement of HP's board of directors during its next shareholder meeting in April 2020. In a statement to TechCrunch, HP disclosed a belief that Xerox's bid was being "driven by" activist shareholder Carl Icahn. Xerox raised its bid to $24 per-share in February 2020.

On February 21, 2020, HP instituted a shareholder rights plan to fend off Xerox's pursuit of a hostile takeover. Four days later, HP announced that, if shareholders rejected the Xerox purchase, it planned on offering $16 billion in capital return between fiscal 2020 and 2022, including $8 billion in additional share buybacks and raising its "target long-term return of capital to 100% of free cash flow generation". HP criticized Xerox's bid as a "flawed value exchange" based on "overstated synergies". On March 5, 2020, HP rejected an offer at $24 per-share.

On March 31, 2020, Xerox rescinded its bid to buy HP Inc, citing that "the current global health crisis and resulting macroeconomic and market turmoil" had "created an environment that is not conducive to Xerox continuing to pursue an acquisition of HP Inc."

Products and operations

HP develops personal computers (PCs), printers and related supplies, as well as 3D printing services.^: 5–6 Its consumer PCs have been marketed under brands such as the Essential line and Pavilion (consumer), Envy and Spectre (high-end and prosumer), and Omen (gaming). HP's business computers are marketed under the "Pro" and "Elite" prefixes. It also manufactures the DeskJet, OfficeJet, and LaserJet series of printers.

In March 2015, HP announced that Bang & Olufsen would become the company's new premium audio partner for its computers and other devices. This replaced the partnership with Beats Electronics that ended upon being acquired by Apple Inc. in 2014.

In fiscal year 2023, total revenue of US$54 billion included US$24.7 billion from the sale of notebook computers, US$10.9 billion from the sale of desktop computers, US$11.4 billion from the sale of printer supplies, US$4.2 billion from the sale of commercial printers, and US$2.4 billion from the sale of consumer printers.^: 40–41 Over 65 percent of revenue in 2022 came from customers outside of the United States.^: 13

HP's first quarter fiscal 2024 net revenue was $13.2 billion, representing a 4.4% decrease (4.9% in constant currency) year-over-year. HP's strong operating activities in the first quarter of fiscal 2024 generated $121 million in net cash. The company also reported a positive free cash flow of $25 million for the quarter. Free cash flow includes $121 million in net cash from operating activities, with adjustments of $62 million for net lease investments and $158 million for property, plant, and equipment investments.

In May 2024, HP announced that its PC models would adopt a new branding nomenclature, with most of its consumer computer models (besides Omen) folded under the "Omni" brand, with "OmniBook" (a revival of Hewlett-Packard's old OmniBook brand that was originally defunct in 2002 after acquiring Compaq that year), "OmniStudio", and "OmniDesk" models.

Controversies

Blocking third-party ink cartridges

In 2016, HP introduced firmware in its printers that disabled the printers if users used ink or toner cartridges which did not contain “new or reused HP chips or electronic circuitry.” As a result, HP faced scathing criticism (such as that from the Electronic Frontier Foundation) and paid millions in class-action lawsuits, such as to certain customers in the US ($1.5 million), Canada ($700,000 CAD), Australia, and Europe ($1.350 million), but without admitting wrongdoing. HP's stated that the firmware was intended to provide "the best consumer experience" and "protect" customers from "counterfeit and third-party ink cartridges that do not contain an original HP security chip and that infringe on our IP."

In 2023, PC World reported that HP printers still prevent users from using third-party ink.

Disabling all-in-one printers

In 2023, HP was sued over allegations that it intentionally designed its all-in-one printers not to perform scanning or faxing when they were low on ink.

Disabling ink cartridges

In February 2019, How-To Geek published an article reporting that HP remotely disabled ink cartridges when the user cancels their Instant Ink subscription.

Xinjiang region

In 2020, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute accused at least 82 major brands, including HP Inc, of being potentially connected to forced Uyghur labor in the Chinese Xinjiang province.

In 2022, in response to the U.S. Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, HP responded, "HP is committed to respecting human rights across our global supply chain and we prohibit the use of involuntary labor of any kind. HP also commits to respecting fundamental rights and freedoms defined in the United Nations (UN) Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in an approach consistent with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) as outlined in our Human Rights Policy."

Israeli conflicts

In 2023, HP as well as Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) has come under criticism for its products provided to the Israeli Police, Israeli Prison Service, and Israeli Population and Immigration Authority. The BDS movement has called for consumers and organizations to boycott all HPE IT services and products as well as printers, computers, and printer cartridges from HP Inc.

Carbon footprint

HP reported Total CO₂e emissions (Direct + Indirect) for the twelve months ending December 31, 2020, at 254 Kt (−34 /-11.8% y-o-y) and plans to reduce emissions 60% by 2025 from a 2015 base year. This science-based target is aligned with Paris Agreement to limit global warming to 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels.

According to a press release issued on April 20, 2021, HP seeks to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions across the HP value chain by 2040, beginning with their Supplies business achieving carbon neutrality by 2030. "Climate change is a defining challenge of our generation that demands immediate action and investment," said Enrique Lores, HP Inc. President and CEO. "Now is a time for bold moves and ambitious goals that will protect our planet and create new sources of innovation and growth across the global economy. By driving toward net-zero carbon emissions across our entire value chain by 2040, product circularity and a forest positive framework, we will accelerate our progress and advance HP’s aspiration to become the world’s most sustainable and just technology company."

Sports sponsorships

In February 2024 HP signed a 3-year sleeve sponsorship deal with Real Madrid, being the first sleeve sponsor of the club's 121-year history.

In April 2024, it was announced HP had signed a "multi-year" deal to become the title sponsor for the Scuderia Ferrari Formula One team, extending to the team's F1 Academy and esports programmes. The HP logo will feature on both the team's 2024 car, the Ferrari SF-24, and the race suits of drivers Carlos Sainz Jr. and Charles Leclerc. Alongside the branding deal, HP will supply the team with services "ranging from computers, printers and other hardware to conferencing technology."

See also

• Hewlett Packard Enterprise – the demerged sibling company that offers servers, storage, networking and communications.
• HP Labs
• List of largest technology companies by revenue
• Real Madrid

References

External links

• Official website
• Business data for HP Inc.: