HP Expects Compaq Merger in April or May

Hewlett-Packard Co., the second-largest computer maker, expects to complete the proposed $19.6-billion purchase of Compaq Computer Corp. in April or May, the companies said in a memo to employees. “We are on target to reach this goal,” Hewlett-Packard integration team leader Webb McKinney and his Compaq counterpart, Jeff Clarke, said. About 1,200 workers are on the integration team, up from 900 a week ago, the memo said.