Cisco to cut another 6,000 jobs as forecast falls flat

(Reuters) - Cisco Systems Inc forecast tepid current-quarter results and said it plans to cut another 6,000 jobs, as the network equipment maker works through a transition toward a new cycle of high-end switches and routers.

The latest round of layoffs is at least the third workforce reduction in about as many years for a company once synonymous with the Internet boom, but which has lately struggled to sustain growth.

The company announced in August 2013 that it would cut 4,000 jobs. And in 2011, it said it planned to reduce its workforce by more than 11,000.

Shares in the company slipped 2.7 percent to $24.90 in extended trading, from a $25.20 close on the Nasdaq.

?The market doesn?t wait for anyone. We are going to lead it, period," Chief Executive Officer John Chambers told analysts on a conference call. "The ability to do that requires some tough decisions. We will manage our costs aggressively and drive efficiencies.?

Cisco also forecast earnings per share of between 51 cents and 53 cents for its current, fiscal first quarter. It predicted flat to 1 percent growth in revenue for the period.

Cisco posted a smaller-than-expected 0.5 percent dip in fiscal fourth-quarter revenue to $12.4 billion. Wall Street on average had expected $12.1 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

That beat the company's previous guidance for a decline in revenue of between 1 percent and 3 percent for the quarter.

Cisco reported a net profit of $2.8 billion in the fiscal fourth quarter, flat from the year-ago quarter and adjusted earnings of 55 cents per share. That exceeded the consensus forecast of 53 cents.

(Reporting by Marina Lopes; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)

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