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Cisco (CSCO) shares added 1.2 percent to $14.38.

The company said its board has authorized up to $5 billion in additional repurchases of common stock. That's on top of Cisco's last boost in its buyback program in August when the board approved a $5 billion extension to a $3 billion authorized program.

Since Cisco started repurchasing its own stock in September 2001, the company has bought back a total of 317 million shares for $4.4 billion, leaving Cisco with room to buy another $3.6 billion of its stock.

Wednesday's action brings the total authorized amount back up to $8.6 billion and there is no expiration date on the program. During the previous quarter, which ended in January, Cisco bought back $1.5 billion of its stock.

"We believe repurchasing Cisco stock while maintaining a strong cash balance is in the best interest of our shareholders," said Chief Financial Officer Larry Carter, in a press release.

Cisco has cash, equivalents and total investments of $21.2 billion.

Separately, Cisco said it'll pay about $13.5 million in stock to acquire privately held SignalWorks, a Mountain View, Calif., maker of software for delivering high-performance audio on Internet telephony systems. The deal is expected to close by the fourth quarter