Hewlett-Packard Board Elected — With No Hewletts or Packards
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Hewlett-Packard shareholders elected eight members to its board Friday, and for the first time in the company's 63-year history, there's neither a Hewlett nor a Packard among them.
The board decided last month not to renominate Walter Hewlett, the son of co-founder William Hewlett, after he sued the company over its proposed merger with Compaq Computer Corp.
Unlike last month's crowded and contentious gathering on the $19 billion merger, the annual meeting Friday was attended only by about 200 people.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}More than 80 percent of the votes were in favor of the slate of candidates, said chief executive Carly Fiorina, who was among those chosen. The slate was nominated by the board last month.
If the merger succeeds, five Compaq directors will join the HP board.
A judge in Delaware is expected to decide soon on Hewlett's lawsuit, which claims HP executives hid internal financial projections showing the deal falling short of publicly promised targets.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Hewlett, who led opposition against the merger, also claimed HP pressured a major investor, Deutsche Bank, to vote in favor of the deal by threatening to withhold business from the bank.
The three-day trial ended Thursday. A ruling was expected within days.
Last week, a preliminary tally of shareholder votes found holders of 51.4 percent of HP shares voted for acquiring Compaq, with 48.6 percent against.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Shares of HP fell 42 cents, to $16.96, in Friday trading on the New York Stock Exchange.