Cisco raises share buyback plan by $10 billion

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Cisco Systems Inc (CSCO.O) said on Friday its board has approved an additional $10 billion for buying back company shares, bringing its total buyback authorization to $62 billion.

Shares in the network equipment maker rose more than 2 percent in pre-market trading to $29.90 from its close of $29.30 on the Nasdaq on Thursday.

Cisco has no set date for completing the repurchases. It said the increased buyback was made possible by its ability to generate cash from its operations.

"This allows us to return a significant amount of cash to our shareholders ... while at the same time continue to make strategic internal investments and acquisitions," Chief Financial Officer Dennis Powell said in a statement.

Cisco began its repurchase program in September 2001. Through the company's first quarter of fiscal 2008, the total buyback has taken 2.3 billion shares off the market for some $46.2 billion.

(Reporting by Michele Gershberg, editing by Gerald E. McCormick and Dave Zimmerman)