Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Trading Up 1.3% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Cisco stock rose 1.3% in Friday trading, reaching as high as $114.57, with volume below its recent average.
• Cisco announced a new AI-driven Security Service Edge partnership with Tech Mahindra, a move that could expand its security offerings and support enterprise demand.
• Analysts remain constructive ahead of Cisco’s earnings, with multiple firms raising price targets and the consensus rating sitting at Moderate Buy; the company also recently beat quarterly estimates and raised guidance.

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report)'s stock price shot up 1.3% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $114.57 and last traded at $114.17. Approximately 18,039,647 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 24% from the average session volume of 23,687,041 shares. The stock had previously closed at $112.76.

Key Stories Impacting Cisco Systems

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

• Positive Sentiment: Cisco announced a new partnership with Tech Mahindra to launch an AI-driven Security Service Edge offering for global enterprises, which could strengthen Cisco’s security portfolio and add to future enterprise demand. Tech Mahindra and Cisco Partner to Bring AI-Driven Security Service Edge to Global Enterprises
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market coverage have highlighted Cisco after an upgrade, helping sentiment around the stock and suggesting investors see room for more upside ahead of earnings. Cisco Systems NASDAQ: CSCO Shares Up 1.3% on Analyst Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Cisco is also drawing attention ahead of its quarterly results, with preview coverage pointing to expected double-digit bottom-line growth, which can keep investors focused on earnings momentum. Cisco Systems' Quarterly Earnings Preview: What You Need to Know
• Neutral Sentiment: Several Yahoo Finance articles referenced Cisco as a cautionary example from the dot-com era while discussing growth stocks, but these pieces were about other companies and did not provide new company-specific news for Cisco. 2 Growth Stocks with All-Star Potential and 1 We Find Risky
• Neutral Sentiment: More analyst commentary compared Cisco’s valuation to its recent partnership-driven momentum, suggesting the stock may already reflect some good news rather than signaling a clear new catalyst. Has Cisco Systems (CSCO) Run Ahead Of Fair Value Following Its Webex Contact Center Deal?
• Neutral Sentiment: Cisco AI security research showed multi-turn attacks can defeat many models, reinforcing Cisco’s credibility in AI security, though the article was more industry-focused than a direct financial catalyst. Multi-turn attacks broke AI models 88% of the time — single-turn testing missed it, Cisco AI security lead warns at VB Transform 2026

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Cisco Systems from $86.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Cisco Systems from $95.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $95.00 to $96.00 in a research report on Monday, May 11th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Cisco Systems from $95.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane increased their target price on shares of Cisco Systems from $87.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $123.14.

Cisco Systems Trading Up 1.3%

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $118.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.43. The company has a market capitalization of $449.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 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.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 13th. The network equipment provider reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.03. Cisco Systems had a return on equity of 28.44% and a net margin of 20.14%.The business had revenue of $15.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.56 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.96 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. 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, analysts forecast that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cisco Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, July 6th were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 6th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Cisco Systems's dividend payout ratio is presently 54.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Deborah L. Stahlkopf sold 6,586 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.31, for a total value of $772,603.66. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 177,223 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,790,030.13. This trade represents a 3.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Jeetendra I. Patel sold 7,169 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.28, for a total value of $840,780.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 246,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $28,937,315.36. This trade represents a 2.82% 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 47,650 shares of company stock valued at $5,668,823 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.01% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Cisco Systems

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Cisco Systems during the fourth quarter worth about $4,473,272,000. Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its position in Cisco Systems by 8,718.3% in the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 51,952,421 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $400,190,000 after purchasing an additional 51,363,281 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in Cisco Systems by 103.2% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 29,289,151 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $2,256,144,000 after purchasing an additional 14,874,407 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Cisco Systems by 18.0% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 50,320,905 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $3,876,219,000 after purchasing an additional 7,679,422 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 11.6% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 59,836,782 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $4,609,227,000 after buying an additional 6,224,062 shares in the last quarter. 73.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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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