Seagate forecasts third-quarter revenue above estimates

(Reuters) - Hard-disk drive maker Seagate Technology Plc forecast current-quarter revenue above estimates, buoyed by strong demand for its cloud-based storage products. Shares of the company, which also posted higher-than-expected second quarter profit and revenue, soared 13.7 percent to $42.56 in after-market trading on Tuesday. Seagate has been focusing on cloud-based products as businesses cut spending on traditional storage systems. "From a macro perspective, we remain cautiously optimistic about the current macroeconomic environment and IT spending trends," Chief Executive Officer Steve Luczo said on a post-earnings conference call. The company forecast third quarter revenue of about $2.7 billion, above estimates of $2.61 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. Seagate also said it expects to achieve revenue growth this year with a profit of at least $4.50 per share. The company said in July it would cut about 6,500 jobs, or 14 percent of its workforce, by the end of fiscal 2017, as part of a major restructuring. Seagate also said earlier this month that it plans to shut its Suzhou factory in China. The company's net income rose to $297 million, or $1 per share, in the second quarter ended Dec. 30, from $165 million, or 55 cents per share. Excluding items, the company earned $1.38 per share, beating the average analysts' estimate of $1.08 per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. Revenue fell 3.1 percent to $2.89 billion, but beat the average estimate of $2.82 billion. Rival Western Digital Corp will report its second-quarter results on Wednesday. (Reporting by Anya George Tharakan and Rishika Sadam in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty and Shounak Dasgupta)