Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Trading Up 5.1% – Should You Buy?

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO)’s stock price rose 5.1% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $121.90 and last traded at $121.74. Approximately 24,894,104 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 5% from the average session volume of 23,643,037 shares. The stock had previously closed at $115.86.

Cisco Systems News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Cisco Systems this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS expects Cisco to exceed fourth-quarter revenue and earnings estimates. Industry checks suggest accelerating demand from hyperscale cloud and “neocloud” customers for AI infrastructure, potentially supporting stronger networking orders and product revenue. Cisco Systems to report amid expectations of continued AI infrastructure strength
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage remains constructive on Cisco’s AI growth trajectory, with rising networking demand and resilient campus-network spending expected to support another solid quarter. Cisco: Ahead of Earnings, We’re On Board With the AI Growth Trajectory
• Neutral Sentiment: Cisco will report fiscal fourth-quarter 2026 results after the market close on Aug. 12, followed by a conference call at 4:30 p.m. ET. The event is the next major catalyst, particularly for AI-related orders and management’s outlook. Cisco Schedules Conference Call for Q4 Fiscal Year 2026 Financial Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts describe the earnings setup as mixed: AI infrastructure demand is improving, but cautious information-technology spending, higher costs and customer deployment delays could limit upside. What’s in Store for These 3 Networking Stocks This Earnings Season?
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded Cisco from “strong buy” to “hold.” After the substantial rally, the downgrade may reinforce concerns about elevated expectations and Cisco’s premium valuation ahead of earnings. Cisco Systems analyst rating downgrade

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CSCO has been the subject of several analyst reports. New Street Research boosted their target price on shares of Cisco Systems from $82.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Cisco Systems from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Evercore boosted their price objective on shares of Cisco Systems from $110.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Cisco Systems from $86.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Cisco Systems from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.14.

Cisco Systems Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $117.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $97.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $476.44 billion, a PE ratio of 39.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.02.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The network equipment provider reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.03. Cisco Systems had a return on equity of 28.44% and a net margin of 20.14%.The company had revenue of $15.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.96 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. Cisco Systems has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 1.160-1.180 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 4.270-4.290 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cisco Systems Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 6th were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 6th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Cisco Systems’s payout ratio is currently 54.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cisco Systems

In other Cisco Systems news, CEO Charles Robbins sold 21,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.03, for a total transaction of $2,568,642.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 637,085 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $76,469,312.55. The trade was a 3.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Oliver Tuszik sold 2,607 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.12, for a total value of $315,759.84. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 172,727 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,920,694.24. This represents a 1.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 47,650 shares of company stock worth $5,668,823. 0.01% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cisco Systems

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. SCS Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Cisco Systems during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,675,000. CORDA Investment Management LLC. purchased a new position in Cisco Systems in the second quarter valued at approximately $6,078,000. Stonehaven Wealth & Tax Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Cisco Systems during the second quarter valued at approximately $420,000. Sound Portfolio Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Cisco Systems during the second quarter worth approximately $526,000. Finally, Silverlake Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Cisco Systems during the second quarter worth approximately $1,006,000. 73.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cisco Systems Company Profile

Cisco Systems, Inc is a global technology company that designs, manufactures and sells networking hardware, software and telecommunications equipment. Its core business focuses on enabling enterprise and service-provider networks through products such as routers, switches, network security appliances and wireless systems. Over time Cisco has broadened its portfolio to emphasize software-defined networking, cybersecurity, cloud infrastructure and edge computing solutions that help organizations build and manage modern IT environments.

In addition to hardware, Cisco offers a growing range of software platforms and subscription services for network management, security, analytics and collaboration.