Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Updates Q1 2027 Earnings Guidance

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) updated its first quarter 2027 earnings guidance on Wednesday. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 1.320-1.340 for the period, compared to the consensus estimate of 1.110. The company issued revenue guidance of $18.0 billion-$18.2 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $16.7 billion. Cisco Systems also updated its FY 2027 guidance to 5.050-5.110 EPS.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CSCO. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $116.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Cisco Systems from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. CICC Research boosted their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $96.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Evercore increased their price objective on Cisco Systems from $110.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Two 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.14.

Cisco Systems Trading Up 2.9%

Shares of CSCO opened at $123.88 on Thursday. Cisco Systems has a 1-year low of $65.75 and a 1-year high of $130.37. The company has a market capitalization of $488.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 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 firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $117.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $98.72.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The network equipment provider reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.05. Cisco Systems had a net margin of 20.14% and a return on equity of 28.44%. The firm had revenue of $17.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.99 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.6% compared to the same quarter last year. 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. Sell-side analysts forecast that Cisco Systems will post 3.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cisco Systems Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 2nd. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Cisco Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.55%.

Insider Activity

In other news, 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 172,727 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,920,694.24. This represents a 1.49% decrease in their position. 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, CEO Charles Robbins sold 21,400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.03, for a total value of $2,568,642.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 637,085 shares in the company, valued at $76,469,312.55. This trade represents a 3.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 47,650 shares of company stock valued at $5,668,823. 0.01% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Cisco Systems

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

• Positive Sentiment: AI-driven demand remains a major growth catalyst. Cisco reported record fourth-quarter revenue of approximately $17.3 billion, up 18% year over year, while networking product orders increased 40%. AI infrastructure orders totaled $4 billion in the quarter and $9.3 billion for fiscal 2026, with management expecting approximately $7.5 billion of AI infrastructure revenue in fiscal 2027. Cisco fiscal 2026 earnings release
• Positive Sentiment: Results and forward guidance exceeded consensus. Adjusted earnings of $1.22 per share topped the $1.17 estimate, and revenue of $17.25 billion exceeded the $16.84 billion forecast. Cisco guided for fiscal first-quarter revenue of $18.0 billion to $18.2 billion and adjusted EPS of $1.32 to $1.34, well above analysts’ expectations. Fiscal 2027 revenue guidance of $72.2 billion to $73.4 billion and adjusted EPS guidance of $5.05 to $5.11 also surpassed consensus. Reuters Cisco forecast article
• Neutral Sentiment: Quarterly dividend maintained. Cisco declared a $0.42-per-share dividend, payable October 21 to shareholders of record October 2, representing an indicated yield of approximately 1.4%.
• Negative Sentiment: Gross-margin pressure is the key concern. Analysts acknowledged the record results but said squeezed gross margins could limit the benefit of stronger sales. Investors may also be concerned that AI networking growth requires substantial investment and could carry lower margins than Cisco’s traditional business. MarketWatch margin concerns article
• Negative Sentiment: The earnings beat may not have cleared an elevated bar. With CSCO trading near its 52-week high and at roughly 40 times earnings, investors appear to be demanding accelerating growth rather than merely strong results. The pullback reflects profit-taking and skepticism that the AI-driven “supercycle” can justify the stock’s premium valuation over the longer term. Barron’s Cisco AI demand article

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cisco Systems

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in shares of Cisco Systems by 103.2% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 29,289,151 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,256,144,000 after purchasing an additional 14,874,407 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Cisco Systems by 15.7% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 21,102,912 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,625,558,000 after buying an additional 2,867,520 shares during the period. Credit Agricole S A bought a new stake in shares of Cisco Systems during the 3rd quarter valued at $138,802,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Cisco Systems by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 48,498,612 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $3,318,275,000 after buying an additional 1,631,703 shares during the period. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 301.6% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,081,451 shares of the network equipment provider’s stock worth $160,334,000 after acquiring an additional 1,563,117 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.33% of the company’s stock.

About Cisco Systems

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.