Tellabs losses deepen, cutting 300 jobs

Naperville-based Tellabs Inc. said Friday it will cut about 300 jobs after it posted a $23 million loss in the fourth quarter.

CEO Dan Kelly said on a conference call that the company plans to cut expenses, including via the job cuts. The company, which has about 2,600 employees worldwide, would not specify where the job cuts would be.

"I can tell you that the workforce reduction will affect people in all Tellabs departments and locations, including Naperville," said Tellabs spokesman George Stenitzer. Those who are laid off will receive severance packages, he said.

Two main reasons for the reductions include the decision to discontinue development of the Tellabs 9200 product, known as a router, and the need to lower operating expenses. Tellabs plans to reduce its quarterly operating expenses to $75 million in the second half of 2013 … which compares with operating expenses of about $99 million in the fourth quarter of 2012, Stenitzer said.

Tellabs' fourth-quarter revenue was $242 million, compared with $317 million in the year-ago quarter. It also posted a net loss of $23 million, or 6 cents per share, in the fourth quarter, compared with a net loss of $5 million, or 1 cent per share, in the same period in 2011.

Overall, 2012 revenue was $1,05 billion, compared to $1.28 billion in 2011.