Dell Inc said on Monday it plans to buy data storage company 3PAR Inc for $18 per share in cash, or $1.15 billion, extending its storage product offering for cloud computing.

The deal marks an 87 percent premium over 3PAR's Friday closing price. It is expected to close by the end of the year, the companies said.

With the deal, Dell is attempting to bolster its services business, as have other technology heavyweights like International Business Machines Corp. Services tend to offer higher profit margins than selling PCs.

Previously, Dell, known for its personal computers, bought another storage company, Equallogic, for $1.4 billion.

Dell said the current deal would likely add to its earnings in fiscal 2012. 3PAR was founded in 1999.

(Reporting by Nick Zieminski and Paul Thomasch; Editing by Derek Caney and Gerald E. McCormick)

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