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HPE’s agreement to buy supercomputer maker Cray is no longer pending: Hewlett Packard Enterprise announced the deal on May 17, 2019, and completed it on September 25, 2019. The announced price was $35 in cash per Cray share. HPE described the deal as worth about $1.3 billion net of cash at announcement; its closing filing later reported about $1.4 billion in aggregate consideration, net of cash acquired.
What happened to Cray?
Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) and Cray announced a definitive acquisition agreement on May 17, 2019. The merger closed on September 25, 2019, and Cray became a wholly owned HPE subsidiary. The agreement was dated May 16, 2019. HPE’s announcement and its 2019 annual filing document the announcement and closing.
How much did HPE pay?
The companies announced a cash offer of $35.00 per Cray share. At closing, HPE reported that each eligible outstanding Cray common share was converted into the right to receive $35.00 in cash, subject to required withholding. The per-share cash consideration was the same in the announcement and closing disclosures. The announcement and HPE’s closing filing state those terms.
Why are the deal values reported as $1.3 billion and $1.4 billion?
They are figures from different stages of the transaction, with different wording in the source documents—not a change to the disclosed $35-per-share offer.
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| Stage | Reported value | What the source says |
|---|---|---|
| May 17, 2019 announcement | Approximately $1.3 billion | Transaction value, net of cash, as described in the announcement. |
| Completion, reported in HPE’s 2019 filing | Approximately $1.4 billion | Aggregate consideration, net of cash acquired, before transaction fees and expenses, as reported in the closing filing. |
The two amounts should be quoted with their stage and wording intact. The available disclosures do not establish that the difference represents a revised per-share price; the stated cash price remained $35 per eligible share.
Why did HPE say it wanted Cray?
HPE presented the acquisition as a way to expand its high-performance computing (HPC) and artificial intelligence portfolio. Its stated rationale was to combine HPE’s enterprise computing, storage, and services capabilities with Cray’s supercomputing expertise. That is the companies’ rationale for the deal, not evidence by itself of what integration later achieved. HPE’s announcement also included market and exascale forecasts made in 2019; those projections should not be treated as current measurements or realized results.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Deal timeline
- May 16, 2019: Merger agreement dated.
- May 17, 2019: HPE and Cray publicly announced the definitive agreement.
- September 25, 2019: Merger completed; Cray became a wholly owned HPE subsidiary.
The dates and completed status are reported in HPE’s 2019 filing.
What the deal’s status does—and does not—establish
The transaction records establish that HPE acquired Cray and the terms reported at announcement and closing. They do not, on their own, establish Cray’s present status as a standalone brand or business, or the results of post-acquisition integration. Those are separate questions requiring current authoritative information.
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