Analyzing Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) and Vistance Networks (NASDAQ:VISN)

Vistance Networks (NASDAQ:VISN) and Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) are both technology companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, risk and profitability.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Vistance Networks and Cisco Systems”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Vistance Networks	$1.93 billion	0.69	$2.28 billion	$30.80	0.19
Cisco Systems	$63.33 billion	6.63	$13.27 billion	$3.34	31.89

Cisco Systems has higher revenue and earnings than Vistance Networks. Vistance Networks is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Cisco Systems, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Vistance Networks and Cisco Systems, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Vistance Networks	0	4	0	0	2.00
Cisco Systems	0	7	16	3	2.85

Vistance Networks presently has a consensus price target of $19.33, suggesting a potential upside of 232.19%. Cisco Systems has a consensus price target of $128.52, suggesting a potential upside of 20.68%. Given Vistance Networks’ higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Vistance Networks is more favorable than Cisco Systems.

Volatility and Risk

Vistance Networks has a beta of 2.38, suggesting that its stock price is 138% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Cisco Systems has a beta of 0.99, suggesting that its stock price is 1% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Vistance Networks and Cisco Systems’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Vistance Networks	247.69%	32.28%	4.61%
Cisco Systems	20.95%	30.16%	11.69%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

88.0% of Vistance Networks shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 73.3% of Cisco Systems shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.5% of Vistance Networks shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.0% of Cisco Systems shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Cisco Systems beats Vistance Networks on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Vistance Networks

CommScope Holding Company, Inc. provides infrastructure solutions for communications and entertainment networks. It operates through four segments: Broadband Networks (Broadband), Outdoor Wireless Networks (OWN), Venue and Campus Networks (VCN), and Home Networks (Home). The Broadband segment provides converged cable access platforms, passive optical networking products, video systems, access technologies, fiber and coaxial cables, fiber and copper connectivity products, and hardened closures to the telco and cable provider broadband market. The OWN segment provides base station antennas, radio frequency filters, tower connectivity, microwave antennas, metro cell products, cabinets, steel towers, accessories, Spectrum Access System, and Comsearch products to the macro and metro cell markets. The VCN segment offers Wi-Fi and switching, distributed antenna systems, licensed and unlicensed small cells, enterprise fiber, and copper infrastructures for campuses, venues, data centers, and buildings. The Home segment provides devices and related software, and management solutions that offer residential connectivity and services to subscribers, such as digital subscriber lines, cable modems, and telephony and data gateways; and set top boxes and software that support cable, satellite, and Internet protocol television content delivery, which include digital video recorders, high definition set top boxes, and hybrid set top devices. It offers its products and services through specialized resellers and distributors, satellite video distributors, and system integrators, as well as directly to customers in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, the Caribbean, Latin America, and Canada. The company was formerly known as Cedar I Holding Company, Inc. and changed its name to CommScope Holding Company, Inc. in January 2011. CommScope Holding Company, Inc. was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Hickory, North Carolina.

About Cisco Systems

Cisco Systems, Inc. designs, manufactures, and sells Internet Protocol based networking and other products related to the communications and information technology industry in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, Japan, and China. The company also offers switching portfolio encompasses campus switching as well as data center switching; enterprise routing portfolio interconnects public and private wireline and mobile networks, delivering highly secure, and reliable connectivity to campus, data center and branch networks; wireless products include wireless access points and controllers; and compute portfolio including the cisco unified computing system, hyperflex, and software management capabilities, which combine computing, networking, and storage infrastructure management and virtualization. In addition, it provides Internet for the future product consists of routed optical networking, 5G, silicon, and optics solutions; collaboration products, such as meetings, collaboration devices, calling, contact center, and communication platform as a service; end-to-end security product consists of network security, cloud security, security endpoints, unified threat management, and zero trust; and optimized application experiences products including full stack observability and network assurance. Further, the company offers a range of service and support options for its customers, including technical support and advanced services and advisory services. It serves businesses of various sizes, public institutions, governments, and service providers. The company sells its products and services directly, as well as through systems integrators, service providers, other resellers, and distributors. Cisco Systems, Inc. has strategic alliances with other companies. Cisco Systems, Inc. was incorporated in 1984 and is headquartered in San Jose, California.