Cisco to buy back $7 billion in stock

Cisco Systems, the world's largest maker of gear that directs Internet traffic, said Tuesday that it plans to buy back another $7 billion of its stock. With the announcement, the router and switch maker has authorized a total of $20 billion in stock repurchases since early 2001.

The company, which is based in San Jose, Calif., said it has repurchased about $7.8 billion of the $20 billion total commitment. Typically, Cisco prefers to repurchase stock rather than issue a dividend to investors.