Dell to buy Compellent for $960 million

Dell Inc agreed to buy data storage company Compellent Technologies Inc for about $960 million in cash as it seeks to expand beyond PCs and catch up with rivals Hewlett-Packard Co and IBM in new technologies like cloud computing.The offer at $27.75 per share is at a 3% discount to Compellent's closing price on Friday on the New York Stock Exchange.Dell will pay $820 million, net of cash, it said in a statement.Compellent shares have risen about 46% since late October when Reuters first reported the deal was being discussed, including a nearly 14% fall on Thursday when Dell said it was bidding for the company.Dell sees the transaction, expected to close in early 2011, adding to its adjusted earnings in fiscal year 2012.Compellent shares were down 2.7% premarket while Dell shares were down 1.4% on Nasdaq.