Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Trading Up 2.5% - What's Next?

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) was up 2.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $61.85 and last traded at $61.29. Approximately 6,339,860 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 69% from the average daily volume of 20,246,804 shares. The stock had previously closed at $59.77.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on CSCO shares. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "equal weight" rating on shares of Cisco Systems in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Cisco Systems from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $72.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Cisco Systems from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $75.00 to $67.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cisco Systems currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $65.05.

Cisco Systems Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $245.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.93, a PEG ratio of 4.16 and a beta of 0.89. The stock's fifty day moving average is $58.78 and its 200-day moving average is $59.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The network equipment provider reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.91 by ($0.14). Cisco Systems had a net margin of 16.96% and a return on equity of 26.08%. On average, analysts forecast that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.04 EPS for the current year.

Cisco Systems Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd were issued a $0.41 dividend. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.66%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 3rd. This is a boost from Cisco Systems's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Cisco Systems's dividend payout ratio is 71.62%.

Cisco Systems declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the network equipment provider to buy up to 6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Thimaya K. Subaiya sold 2,065 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.70, for a total value of $125,345.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 191,184 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,604,868.80. This represents a 1.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Maria Victoria Wong sold 762 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.99, for a total transaction of $46,474.38. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 44,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,693,013.45. This represents a 1.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 66,547 shares of company stock worth $4,275,553 over the last quarter. 0.01% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cisco Systems

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CSCO. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Cisco Systems in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Navigoe LLC acquired a new stake in Cisco Systems during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Cisco Systems during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. JDM Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Cisco Systems by 160.4% during the 4th quarter. JDM Financial Group LLC now owns 487 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Cisco Systems during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 73.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Cisco Systems

Cisco Systems, Inc designs, manufactures, and sells Internet Protocol based networking and other products related to the communications and information technology industry in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, Japan, and China. The company also offers switching portfolio encompasses campus switching as well as data center switching; enterprise routing portfolio interconnects public and private wireline and mobile networks, delivering highly secure, and reliable connectivity to campus, data center and branch networks; wireless products include wireless access points and controllers; and compute portfolio including the cisco unified computing system, hyperflex, and software management capabilities, which combine computing, networking, and storage infrastructure management and virtualization.

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