Hewlett-Packard is Doomed if This Happens

Hewlett-Packard

is on the cusp of losing its title as the world's largest manufacturer of PCs.

According to

, Lenovo could be the firm that steals that crown. The Beijing, China-based corporation, which acquired IBM's

personal computer business

, could become the new world leader as soon as this year. "It's just a matter of time before Lenovo becomes No. 1 and it won't be surprising at all if it happens later this year," Frederick Wong, executive director at Avant Capital Management, told Reuters. Lenovo became the number-two PC player in the third quarter of 2011. Citing research from IDC, Reuters said that during the April-June 2012 quarter, Lenovo held 14.9 percent of the global market share, while Hewlett-Packard held 15.5 percent. Gartner

, another industry research firm, believes that the gap between Lenovo and Hewlett-Packard is even smaller. The bad news does not end there. Hewlett-Packard hit a 52 week low today, with shares declining to $18.77. The stock is trading at its lowest levels since 2004.