Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) Trading Up 2.8% Following Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Cisco shares rose 2.8% after Goldman Sachs increased its price target from $116 to $125, while keeping a neutral rating on the stock.
• Analyst sentiment around Cisco remains mixed but generally positive, with several firms recently raising targets or reiterating Buy/Overweight ratings. The consensus view is currently Moderate Buy with an average price target of $119.50.
• Cisco continues to benefit from strong fundamentals, including a recent earnings beat, raised guidance, and growing momentum in AI infrastructure and cybersecurity products. Insiders have also been selling shares, though the article notes these trades were made under pre-arranged 10b5-1 plans.

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report)'s share price was up 2.8% during trading on Thursday after The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on the stock from $116.00 to $125.00. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Cisco Systems traded as high as $130.37 and last traded at $130.00. Approximately 23,250,590 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 2% from the average daily volume of 23,691,801 shares. The stock had previously closed at $126.50.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. Erste Group Bank downgraded Cisco Systems from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their price objective on Cisco Systems from $87.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted 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. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Cisco Systems from $91.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, CICC Research lifted their target price on Cisco Systems from $96.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $119.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Charles Robbins sold 21,400 shares of Cisco Systems stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was 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 directly owned 637,085 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $76,469,312.55. The trade was a 3.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed 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 Cisco Systems stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider directly owned 246,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at $28,937,315.36. The trade was a 2.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 51,324 shares of company stock valued at $5,559,834. 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: Cisco’s AI platform and cybersecurity rollout is strengthening the bull case, with new products aimed at secure AI infrastructure and ransomware defense. Cisco’s AI Platforms And Cybersecurity Push Test Valuation For Investors
• Positive Sentiment: HSBC previously upgraded Cisco on surging AI infrastructure demand, suggesting the company’s growth profile is improving as AI spending expands. HSBC Upgrades Cisco Systems (CSCO) on Surging AI Infrastructure Demand
• Positive Sentiment: Cisco’s recent earnings beat and raised guidance are still helping sentiment, as the company reported stronger-than-expected revenue and EPS and lifted its AI infrastructure orders target. Cisco Systems (CSCO) Is Up 8.2% After Record AI-Focused Quarter And New Cloud Control Platform – Has The Bull Case Changed?
• Neutral Sentiment: Goldman Sachs kept a Hold/Neutral view and raised its price target, signaling limited near-term upside in its view despite better fundamentals. Goldman Sachs Remains a Hold on Cisco Systems (CSCO)
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley reiterated a Buy rating, adding to the overall positive analyst backdrop but not changing the story materially on its own. Morgan Stanley Sticks to Their Buy Rating for Cisco Systems (CSCO)
• Neutral Sentiment: Cisco was mentioned in broader market commentary on semiconductor and AI spending, which supports the sector narrative but is not company-specific. Strategist Defends Semiconductor Rally Despite Bubble Fears

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cisco Systems

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CSCO. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Cisco Systems during the 4th quarter worth $4,473,272,000. Auto Owners Insurance Co grew its stake in Cisco Systems by 8,718.3% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 51,952,421 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $400,190,000 after purchasing an additional 51,363,281 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Cisco Systems by 103.2% during the 4th 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. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its stake in Cisco Systems by 110.2% during the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 18,406,442 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $1,259,369,000 after purchasing an additional 9,648,265 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Cisco Systems by 18.0% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. 73.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cisco Systems Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $512.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.21, a PEG ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.92. The company has a 50 day moving average of $96.27 and a 200 day moving average of $84.33.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The network equipment provider reported $1.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.03. Cisco Systems had a return on equity of 28.44% and a net margin of 20.14%.The firm had revenue of $15.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.96 EPS. Cisco Systems'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. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.52 EPS for the current year.

Cisco Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 6th. Cisco Systems's payout ratio is 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.