EMC, the Hopkinton, Mass., data storage giant, has released a "few hundred" employees from its 24,000-person workforce after an annual performance review by department heads.

"This was not based on any change in business expectations nor was it a cost-cutting exercise," said EMC spokesman Mark Fredrickson said. "Companies that hire aggressively and don't constantly trim end up with bureaucracy and bloat."

The cuts, which weren't announced publicly, occurred last week and were spread proportionally across all company locations, Fredrickson said.

Fredrickson declined to give the exact number of jobs cut, but said it was less than 3 percent of the workforce.

EMC continues to hire and will end February with a higher head count than it began the month, Fredrickson said. In all, the company will hire about 7,000 people in 2001. The company is also sticking to its revenue forecast of 35 percent growth to $12 billion.

EMC's cuts come on the heels of layoffs at other high-profile technology companies, including Dell Computer, WorldCom and Verizon, which have cited slowing demand for infrastructure equipment.

The cloudy future for many in the sector, has hurt EMC's stock in recent weeks, which is flirting with its year low. In midday trading Monday, the issue was own 3.44, or 6 percent, to 52.960. In the last 52 weeks, it has been as high as 104.938 and as low as 50.969.