Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Trading Up 2.1% Following Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Cisco shares rose 2.1% after Bank of America lifted its price target from $135 to $150 and reiterated a Buy rating, helping fuel the latest move higher.
• Wall Street sentiment remains broadly positive, with multiple analysts raising targets or maintaining Buy calls; the stock currently carries a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target around $120.18.
• Cisco also continues to show solid operating momentum, recently beating quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, while announcing a $0.42 quarterly dividend payable on July 22.

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report)'s share price was up 2.1% during trading on Monday after Bank of America raised their price target on the stock from $135.00 to $150.00. Bank of America currently has a buy rating on the stock. Cisco Systems traded as high as $126.44 and last traded at $124.15. Approximately 23,607,302 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 1% from the average daily volume of 23,780,393 shares. The stock had previously closed at $121.64.

Several other research firms have also commented on CSCO. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Cisco Systems from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $95.00 to $96.00 in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $86.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Citic Securities upped their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $90.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Cisco Systems in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. They set a "buy" rating and a $94.00 price target for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $120.18.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Charles Robbins sold 21,400 shares of the company's 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 completion of 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 SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Deborah L. Stahlkopf sold 6,586 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.31, for a total transaction of $772,603.66. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 177,223 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,790,030.13. The trade was a 3.58% 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 51,324 shares of company stock valued at $5,559,834. Corporate insiders own 0.01% of the company's stock.

Key Cisco Systems News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America raised Cisco’s price target from $135 to $150 and kept a Buy rating, signaling confidence in further upside for the shares. Benzinga report on price target increase
• Positive Sentiment: Several articles highlight Cisco as a buy candidate, reflecting favorable Wall Street sentiment and reinforcing expectations for continued momentum. Wall Street Analysts See Cisco (CSCO) as a Buy: Should You Invest?
• Positive Sentiment: Cisco executives are emphasizing that AI is improving the company’s competitive position in cybersecurity, which could support a longer-term growth story in a large and expanding market. Cisco Exec Admits Every Competitor Was Beating Them. Now He's Saying AI Just 'Changed' The Game In Their Favor.
• Neutral Sentiment: Other stories are largely commentary on Cisco’s long-term returns and historical performance, which may reinforce investor interest but are not a direct near-term catalyst. If You Invested $1000 in Cisco Systems a Decade Ago, This is How Much It'd Be Worth Now

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cisco Systems

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cozad Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Cisco Systems by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc. now owns 26,203 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $2,033,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Financial Insights Inc. lifted its holdings in Cisco Systems by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Financial Insights Inc. now owns 6,220 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $483,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Cisco Systems by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC now owns 5,061 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $393,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co lifted its holdings in Cisco Systems by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 33,666 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $2,596,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pacific Sage Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Cisco Systems by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Pacific Sage Partners LLC now owns 16,185 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $1,256,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. 73.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cisco Systems Stock Up 2.1%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company has a market capitalization of $489.33 billion, a PE ratio of 40.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.01. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $98.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $85.01.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) last posted 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 net margin of 20.14% and a return on equity of 28.44%. The company had revenue of $15.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.56 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.96 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue 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. As a group, analysts forecast that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.54 EPS for the current year.

Cisco Systems Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 6th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Cisco Systems's dividend payout ratio is currently 54.55%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.