HP to buy data analytics company Vertica

Hewlett-Packard said Monday that it has agreed to buy software startup Vertica in a deal that may signal a new push into the growing field of business analytics.

While terms of the deal were not disclosed, suggesting a relatively small purchase price, analysts said it appears to be a strategic move by HP's new CEO, Leo Apotheker, to expand in an area where HP has lagged behind big tech rivals such as International Business Machines, Oracle and EMC.

"We view this acquisition as the first real move of significance for HP's new CEO," Peter Goldmacher, an investment analyst at Cowen and Co., said in a research note. "HP is finally getting back into the software business."

Analytics software helps businesses sift through the vast amounts of data they accumulate from their daily operations, including sales, supply and manufacturing processes, so they can identify and anticipate useful patterns or trends.

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