Ikon Office Cuts 2,600 Jobs, Lowers Forecast

Ikon Office Solutions Inc., the largest U.S. distributor of Canon Inc. and Ricoh Co. copiers, will eliminate about 2,600 jobs and said profit for the quarter that ended Sunday will be lower than forecast.

Ikon said profit from operations was 9 cents to 12 cents a share in the fiscal fourth quarter, less than its estimate of 14 cents. Ikon will have a loss after taking a pretax charge of about $65 million for the job cuts and exiting some businesses.

Ikon, which cut about 2,000 jobs in the fiscal year that just ended, wants to focus on providing copiers, printers, network design and training.

The company plans to stop providing telephone systems and services in the U.S. and Europe, leaving a business with $26 million to $30 million in sales a year.

The company expects about $50 million in savings a year. The job cuts, expected through firings and attrition, equal about 6.8% of Ikon’s 38,000-employee work force and will be completed over the next year.

Shares of Valley Forge, Pa.-based Ikon fell 22 cents to close at $7.50 on the NYSE.