Hewlett-Packard Shares Rise Under New Symbol

  Investors, who had already driven up the share price over five of the last six trading session, appear to have been reassured that the integration of the two companies is proceeding smoothly, said Daniel Kunstler, an analyst at J.P. Morgan.

"Over the weekend there were comments made saying they're being very decisive about the integration and doing it very swiftly and competently," Kunstler said. "I think the near-term integration fears are subsiding slightly."

HP shares gained 4.47 percent, or 78 cents, to close at $18.22 in New York Stock Exchange trading, their biggest single-day percentage gain since Jan. 30.

Shares in the computer and printer maker have rallied since April 29, the day before a Delaware judge dismissed a challenge to the merger (news - web sites) with Compaq. The shares had fallen 22 percent since the merger with Compaq was announced on Sept. 3.

HP, which used to trade under the symbol HWP (news - web sites), won approval for its merger after a long and bruising proxy battle that ended last week with a failed lawsuit filed by dissident shareholder Walter Hewlett.

HP Chief Executive Carly Fiorina marked the merged company's first day of trading under its new symbol with an exuberant rally in which she rang a bell at the company's Palo Alto, California, headquarters that was relayed by satellite to the New York Stock Exchange and marked the start of the day's trading.

Fiorina, wearing a blue-and-white baseball cap that said "HP Invent" on the front, appeared on the video link backed by a group of cap-waving employees from HP's integration team who broke into a cheer as trading started.

Compaq's symbol was CPQ (news - web sites) before it was delisted in association with being purchased.

HP's $18.7 billion purchase of Compaq was initially greeted with skepticism on Wall Street.

Analysts said they would reserve judgement on whether HP would be a new and improved company in its latest incarnation.

Bear Stearns analyst Andrew Neff said in a research note on Monday that it would maintain its "neutral" rating on the company, citing concerns that HP's sense of urgency during the proxy battle might not continue now that the deal has been done.

He also said that the computer market at large remains tough, with weak corporate demand for new technology and the potential for further price cuts in personal computers.

HP will officially launch the new company in a press conference on Tuesday.