Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Trading Down 1.8% – Time to Sell?

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) shares traded down 1.8% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $116.56 and last traded at $117.09. Approximately 20,711,138 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 13% from the average daily volume of 23,898,604 shares. The stock had previously closed at $119.25.

Cisco Systems News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts highlighted Cisco as a better-value way to play cybersecurity versus CrowdStrike, citing rising AI-driven security demand as a tailwind. CRWD vs. CSCO: Which Cybersecurity Stock Should You Buy Right Now?
• Positive Sentiment: Another report said Cisco is positioned to benefit from the AI boom through expanding AI products, partnerships, and infrastructure tied to strong second-half demand. The AI Boom Isn’t Over: 3 Stocks to Buy for 2H 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Commentary from Seeking Alpha and Trefis argued Cisco still has room to rerate and pointed to AI infrastructure as an underappreciated growth engine. Why Cisco Still Has Room To Rerate
• Positive Sentiment: Rumors that Cisco could pursue SentinelOne, along with data center expansion in Italy and Bahrain, suggest a more aggressive push into security and AI infrastructure. Cisco (CSCO) Eyes SentinelOne As Italy And Bahrain Data Center Push Expands

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Zacks Research upgraded Cisco Systems from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Truist Financial started coverage on Cisco Systems in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price target for the company. New Street Research upped their price objective on Cisco Systems from $82.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Cisco Systems from $90.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.14.

Cisco Systems Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $461.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.02. 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 company’s 50-day moving average price is $115.88 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $92.47.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The network equipment provider reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $15.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.56 billion. Cisco Systems had a net margin of 20.14% and a return on equity of 28.44%. Cisco Systems’s quarterly revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.96 earnings per share. 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. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.54 EPS for the current year.

Cisco Systems Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 6th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 6th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Cisco Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.55%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Deborah L. Stahlkopf sold 6,586 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.31, for a total transaction of $772,603.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 177,223 shares in the company, valued at $20,790,030.13. This represents a 3.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Charles Robbins sold 21,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $76,469,312.55. This represents a 3.25% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 47,650 shares of company stock valued at $5,668,823 over the last ninety days. 0.01% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cisco Systems

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ballast Inc. raised its position in Cisco Systems by 10.4% in the second quarter. Ballast Inc. now owns 27,711 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $3,255,000 after purchasing an additional 2,609 shares during the last quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Cisco Systems by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,031 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,061,000 after buying an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Cisco Systems during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $306,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Cisco Systems during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $546,000. Finally, Tema ETFs LLC raised its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 10.7% during the second quarter. Tema ETFs LLC now owns 85,868 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $10,086,000 after acquiring an additional 8,265 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.33% of the company’s stock.

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.