Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Stock Price Up 1.1% – Should You Buy?

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) traded up 1.1% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $113.85 and last traded at $112.90. 22,637,306 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 5% from the average daily volume of 23,794,912 shares. The stock had previously closed at $111.68.

Key Cisco Systems News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Cisco reported approximately $4 billion of AI infrastructure orders in the fourth quarter and $9.3 billion for fiscal 2026. Management expects $7.5 billion of AI infrastructure revenue in fiscal 2027, reinforcing confidence that hyperscaler and data-center spending can support continued growth. Strong AI Infrastructure Orders Drive Confidence in Cisco Systems
• Positive Sentiment: Freedom Capital upgraded CSCO from “hold” to “strong buy.” The bullish call adds support for the stock after its post-earnings decline, particularly as Cisco’s results exceeded expectations and fiscal 2027 guidance was optimistic.
• Positive Sentiment: Industry coverage points to Cisco as a key supplier to Fabrinet’s AI-related customer base, alongside Nvidia, Amazon and Nokia. This offers an indirect read-through to demand for Cisco’s networking equipment and AI data-center infrastructure. The Customer List Behind Fabrinet’s AI Boom
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts characterized the earnings-related selloff as potentially excessive, but investors remain focused on whether AI growth can be sustained and whether Cisco can convert large orders into profitable revenue. Cisco: Buy the AI Pullback, But Watch the Margin Pressure
• Negative Sentiment: Gross margin declined to 66.3% and is expected to reach only 65%–66% in the first quarter of fiscal 2027. Rising memory costs, higher hardware content and a less favorable product mix are raising concerns that AI-driven revenue growth could come with lower profitability. Cisco Grew Faster by Selling Hardware and Charging More for It
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Charles Robbins and several executives sold shares under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans. The sales are a modest negative signal, though the executives retained substantial positions and the transactions do not necessarily indicate deteriorating business expectations.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CSCO has been the topic of a number of research reports. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Cisco Systems from $121.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $90.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on Cisco Systems from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Freedom Capital raised Cisco Systems from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Cisco Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $129.43.

Cisco Systems Trading Down 1.1%

The firm has a market capitalization of $439.90 billion, a PE ratio of 33.42, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.02. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $116.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $99.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.93.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The network equipment provider reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $17.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.84 billion. Cisco Systems had a return on equity of 30.16% and a net margin of 20.95%.Cisco Systems’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.99 earnings per share. Cisco Systems has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.050-5.110 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.320-1.340 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 4.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Cisco Systems Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 2nd. Cisco Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.30%.

Insider Activity

In other Cisco Systems news, EVP Thimaya K. Subaiya sold 7,127 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.91, for a total transaction of $854,598.57. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 140,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,890,162.87. This trade represents a 4.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Oliver Tuszik sold 2,760 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.46, for a total transaction of $310,389.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 165,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,586,938.96. This represents a 1.64% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 69,179 shares of company stock valued at $7,985,229 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.01% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cisco Systems

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Cisco Systems during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $6,442,000. World Investment Advisors grew its position in shares of Cisco Systems by 15.4% during the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 198,549 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $13,905,000 after buying an additional 26,455 shares in the last quarter. WCG Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 101.8% in the fourth quarter. WCG Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 107,306 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $8,266,000 after buying an additional 54,141 shares during the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. raised its holdings in Cisco Systems by 47.1% in the fourth quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 200,341 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $15,432,000 after acquiring an additional 64,144 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ABN AMRO Bank N.V. acquired a new stake in Cisco Systems in the second quarter valued at $19,114,000. 73.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.