HP says company it acquired lied, takes $8.8B charge

http://www.nbcnews.com/business/hp-says-company-it-acquired-lied-takes-8-8b-charge-1C7172258

11/20/2012: CNBC’s David Faber

Hewlett-Packard Co said on Tuesday it took an $8.8 billion charge related to its acquisition of British software firm Autonomy, citing "serious accounting improprieties," as it swung to a fourth-quarter loss.

The company, fresh off a nearly $11 billion charge last quarter for its EDS services division, said more than $5 billion of the Autonomy charge was tied to "improprieties, misrepresentation and disclosure failures" discovered after a whistleblower came forward.

HP said it has referred the matter to the Securities and Exchange Commission's enforcement division and the UK's Serious Fraud Office for civil and criminal investigation. It said it will take legal action to recoup "what we can for our shareholders."

In an interview with CNBC, HP's CEO Meg Whitman said Autonomy's executives deliberately misled management and shareholders.

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