There’s nothing like a bidding war to get a company’s stock soaring: Witness 3PAR, now the prize in a contest between tech titans Hewlett-Packard and Dell.

3PAR, a data-storage provider, saw its stock price leap over 40% to $25.31 a share after Hewlett-Packard made a bid of $24 a share days after rival Dell agreed to buy the firm. Before Dell’s move, 3PAR’s share price was less than $10. Judging from Monday’s price jump, investors are expecting Dell to fight back with another offer.

The tug-of-war over 3PAR is just the latest in a slew of recent merger moves — a trend that could push stocks higher even if investors remain concerned about the progress of the U.S. economy.

So far, it’s just the deal talk that’s keeping the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Standard & Poor’s 500 stock indexes in the red. The Dow’s right on the edge, while the S&P500 is up 0.1%.

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