William Blair analyst Ryan Merkel believes Lowe's (LOW) acquisition of Maintenance Supply Headquarters could set up a potential bidding war for HD Supply Holdings (HDS). Maintenance Supply is the number three player in maintenance, repair and operations supplies, well behind HD Supply and Home Depot's (HD) Interline Brands, Merkel tells investors in a research note. He continues to believe that either Lowe's or Home Depot could be a strategic acquirer of HD Supply. The analyst's bull case values HD Supply at $52 per share. The stock in afternoon trading is up 63c to $40.14.