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For Compaq Alumni   (Updated Apr 11, 2025)

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HPInc. is the overall legal successor to Hewlett-Packard and to companies acquired by Hewlett-Packard before Nov 1, 2015 – such as Compaq, DEC, EDS, Tandem, etc. For employees of HP -- and predecessor companies -- who left before the HPInc/HPE split, responsibility for any health or retirement benefits varies from country to country. For the US, HPInc has responsibility. For Canada and UK, HPE has responsibility. In many countries, plans were split between HPInc and HPE. See: Where are my benefits?

Key contact: The HP Retirement Service Center is the primary administrator for HP Inc U.S. pension and 401(k) accounts, including any accounts for companies that Hewlett-Packard acquired before Nov 1, 2015 (Compaq, DEC, EDS, etc.) Operated by Fidelity Investments. 1-800-457-4015 (If no password, keep hitting #.) (Outside US 1-508-787-9902 collect.) https://nb.fidelity.com (Don't go to a local Fidelity office, which is focused on sales.)

Compaq history -- Books, articles, websites, video.


Select the links below that fit your situation...

- Current HP or HPE employee: Networking and Information for Current Employees. Join Ex-Compaq* group on LinkedIn.

- HP or HPE employee in the process of leaving: use the ASAP checklist. Join Ex-Compaq* and "Hewlett-Packard / HPE - Unofficial" on LinkedIn

- Former Compaq employee who never worked for HP: Join Ex-Compaq* group on LinkedIn.

(The Ex-Compaq group on LinkedIn is operated by Compaq alumni, not by the HPAA.)


Received a "Potential Private Retirement Benefit" letter from U.S. Social Security? It shows your last transaction ("Year Reported.") Look up the "Type of Benefit" and "Payment Frequency" codes on the back. Who to contact: "Potential Benefit" letter

If you have paper stock certificates. What to do: Stock Certificates

Compaq 401(k) plan #001:

- Name: "Compaq Computer Corporation 401(k) Investment Plan"

- EIN: 76-0011617 Plan number: 001 ("EIN" = IRS Employer Identification Number)

- Abbreviated as: 76-0011617-001

- Administrator: The HP Retirement Service Center is the primary administrator for HP Inc U.S. pension and 401(k) accounts, including any accounts for companies that Hewlett-Packard acquired before Nov 1, 2015 (Compaq, DEC, EDS, etc.) Operated by Fidelity Investments. 1-800-457-4015 (If no password, keep hitting #.) (Outside US 1-508-787-9902 collect.) https://nb.fidelity.com (Don't go to a local Fidelity office, which is focused on sales.)

- Previous administrator before Compaq was sold to HP -- Vanguard.

- Be sure you have a valid beneficiary designation on file at Fidelity.

- Benefits under 401(k) plans are not insured by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC.)

- For details of the plan, see the last SEC report on the Compaq 401(k) Plan (from 2002, the year that Compaq was sold to HP.)

Compaq 401(k) plan #002:

- Name: "NetWorth Inc 401K Pension Plan" [Compaq acquired NetWorth Inc of Irving, TX in 1995.]

- EIN: 76-0011617 Plan number: 002 ("EIN" = IRS Employer Identification Number)

- Abbreviated as: 76-0011617-002

- Administrator: The HP Retirement Service Center is the primary administrator for HP Inc U.S. pension and 401(k) accounts, including any accounts for companies that Hewlett-Packard acquired before Nov 1, 2015 (Compaq, DEC, EDS, etc.) Operated by Fidelity Investments. 1-800-457-4015 (If no password, keep hitting #.) (Outside US 1-508-787-9902 collect.) https://nb.fidelity.com (Don't go to a local Fidelity office, which is focused on sales.)

- Previous administrator before Compaq was sold to HP -- unknown.

- Be sure you have a valid beneficiary designation on file at Fidelity.

- Benefits under 401(k) plans are not insured by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC.)

- Cannot find a Form 5500 report filed since January 1, 2010 on this plan.


HP merger with Compaq. Before the deal was announced, Compaq stock was down to $12 -- from $33 in 1999. Compaq management and board negotiated a merger at 18% over market price. (90% of Compaq shares were voted in favor; 51% of HP shares were voted in favor.)

Deal closed on May 3, 2002. HWP stock symbol was changed to HPQ. Compaq shareholders received 0.6325 share of HPQ in exchange for each CPQ share. CPQ stock was retired. (Compaq had bought Tandem on Sep 2, 1997 and bought DEC on Jun 12, 1998.)

HP Breakup. On Nov 1, 2015, the legal name of the Hewlett-Packard Company was changed to HP Inc. and a new, completely separate company – Hewlett Packard Enterprise (no hyphen, singular) – was spun off. Portions of HPE were later spun off into DXC and Micro Focus: HP Breakup

Which HP-related companies have me classified as a retiree or former employee? Due to acquisitions and spinoffs, this may not be obvious. Check here: Which Company

Contacts at HP Inc. -- the successor company: HP contacts

Make sure that the overall legal successor to every company you ever worked for has your current postal address. Even if not classified by the company as a "Retiree" or if long gone -- in case of pension plan changes, employment lawsuits, settlements, or other issues. Update address at former company

Update and strengthen your LinkedIn profile. Even if not currently looking, you need a strong, credible LinkedIn profile. Reconnect with people who know your work. Be found for your specialty and background by AI, recruiters, and managers. Your profile may look bogus -- most HP positions were changed to HPE; the LinkedIn company selector has trouble with "Hewlett-Packard" and "EDS." Member advice on settings, networking, emails. hpalumni.org/LinkedIn

Stock. You may now have shares of HPInc, HPE, and/or DXC – in different accounts – and may not have received cash payouts. Find it all – and estimate your current cost basis: Stock Step-by-Step

How one broker handled stock history for: Compaq   DEC    Tandem

If you bought CPQ shares under the Compaq employee stock purchase plan, those shares were automatically converted to HPQ shares at the time of the merger. Unless you have sold or transferred them, the shares (and your corresponding new Hewlett Packard Enterprise and other spinoff shares) are being held by the last administrator of the plan, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney -- which is no longer being paid by the company for this work. Details and HPAA advice for former CPQ employee shareholders

Morgan Stanley customers are getting different results from different divisions of the company -- depending on whether they were participants in the Compaq Employee Stock Purchase Plan or had transferred their HP stock to a personal account at Morgan Stanley's local-office-based retail brokerage division. Morgan Stanley issues reported by members

Service at predecessor companies. Of HPInc's many predecessor companies, only HP and DEC ever had retiree healthcare programs. Only HP, DEC, and EDS ever had pension plans. Over the years, HP, DEC, and EDS set aside money in dedicated trust funds to pay for those programs. Therefore, employees of other acquisitions did not get credit under HP's retiree healthcare or pension programs for service at the predecessor -- but generally did get service credit for other benefits.

Worldwide employment verification and experience letters for Hewlett-Packard, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, and related companies. Employment and Experience Verification

Reconnect, celebrate the good times, and appreciate those who have passed. Leading Compaq- and HP-related Facebook groups -- which you can join without disclosing personal info: https://www.hpalumni.org/facebook

Contacts for former HP and HPE employees: Contacts   


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