Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Price Target Raised to $125.00

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs raised its price target on Cisco Systems to $125 from $116 while keeping a neutral rating, implying only modest downside from the prior close.
• Several other analysts also turned more upbeat on Cisco, including HSBC’s upgrade to Buy and higher targets from Piper Sandler, New Street Research, and Evercore, leaving the stock with an average Moderate Buy rating.
• Cisco’s latest quarterly results beat estimates, with EPS of $1.06 and revenue of $15.84 billion, while the company also highlighted strong AI-related momentum and raised its FY 2026 guidance.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) had its price target boosted by analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from $116.00 to $125.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage presently has a "neutral" rating on the network equipment provider's stock. The Goldman Sachs Group's price objective suggests a potential downside of 1.47% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on CSCO. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Cisco Systems from $86.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. HSBC raised Cisco Systems from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $77.00 to $137.00 in a research note on Friday, May 15th. New Street Research lifted their target price on Cisco Systems from $82.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Evercore boosted their price target on Cisco Systems from $110.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Cisco Systems from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $119.50.

Cisco Systems Stock Performance

Cisco Systems stock traded down $1.13 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $126.87. The stock had a trading volume of 6,096,426 shares, compared to its average volume of 23,446,385. Cisco Systems has a 52-week low of $63.87 and a 52-week high of $128.22. The company has a market capitalization of $500.05 billion, a PE ratio of 41.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.01. The firm's fifty day moving average is $94.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $83.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The network equipment provider reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $15.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.56 billion. Cisco Systems had a net margin of 20.14% and a return on equity of 28.44%. The company's revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior 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. On average, research analysts forecast that Cisco Systems will post 3.54 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Charles Robbins sold 21,400 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 637,085 shares of the company's stock, valued at $76,469,312.55. This represents a 3.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Jeetendra I. Patel sold 7,169 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.28, for a total transaction of $840,780.32. Following the transaction, the insider owned 246,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at $28,937,315.36. This trade represents a 2.82% decrease in their position. 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 have sold 51,324 shares of company stock worth $5,559,834. Insiders own 0.01% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Cisco Systems

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. World Investment Advisors boosted its position in Cisco Systems by 15.4% during the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 198,549 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $13,905,000 after purchasing an additional 26,455 shares in the last quarter. Rockland Trust Co. boosted its position in shares of Cisco Systems by 213.8% in the 3rd quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 20,497 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $1,402,000 after purchasing an additional 13,966 shares in the last quarter. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. grew its stake in Cisco Systems by 126.3% during the 3rd quarter. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. now owns 176,715 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $12,018,000 after buying an additional 98,630 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp increased its position in Cisco Systems by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 4,311,098 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $332,084,000 after buying an additional 275,456 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Cisco Systems by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,873,274 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $375,388,000 after buying an additional 151,395 shares during the last quarter. 73.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Cisco Systems

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

• Positive Sentiment: HSBC upgraded Cisco to Buy and lifted its price target to $137 from $77, saying AI infrastructure demand is stronger than expected and has materially improved Cisco’s growth outlook. HSBC Upgrades Cisco Systems (CSCO) on Surging AI Infrastructure Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Cisco reported a record AI-focused quarter, beat earnings expectations, raised its AI infrastructure orders target, and launched new products including Cloud Control and Live Protect, which investors are reading as evidence that Cisco is turning AI demand into real revenue momentum. Cisco Systems (CSCO) Is Up 8.2% After Record AI-Focused Quarter And New Cloud Control Platform – Has The Bull Case Changed?
• Positive Sentiment: At Cisco Live, the company unveiled an agentic AI platform for managing and defending critical IT infrastructure, reinforcing its strategy to combine networking, automation, and cybersecurity into a unified AI platform. Cisco Unveils Agentic Platform for Operating and Defending Critical IT Infrastructure
• Positive Sentiment: The company also launched Live Protect to help customers defend against AI-powered cyber threats, which could support longer-term security software growth and deepen customer demand. Cisco Live Protect cybersecurity software to combat AI-powered attacks
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusual call buying in Cisco options suggests traders are positioning for more upside, but this is more a sign of bullish sentiment than a direct business catalyst.
• Neutral Sentiment: New government scrutiny of frontier AI cybersecurity risks may increase attention on the sector, but the executive order is voluntary and does not appear to be a direct negative for Cisco. 3 Stocks At The Center Of Trump's AI Security Order

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.

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