Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Cisco Systems, Inc. $CSCO

Key Points

• Aptus Capital Advisors increased its Cisco Systems stake by 108.6% in the fourth quarter, ending with 306,177 shares valued at about $23.6 million.
• Cisco continues to draw mixed but largely positive analyst attention, with firms like KeyCorp and UBS raising price targets while the overall consensus remains a Moderate Buy at $120.64.
• The company reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.06 on revenue of $15.84 billion, and it also announced a $0.42 quarterly dividend payable July 22.

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO - Free Report) by 108.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 306,177 shares of the network equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 159,410 shares during the quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Cisco Systems were worth $23,585,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. CreativeOne Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Cisco Systems by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 53,085 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $4,089,000 after purchasing an additional 3,404 shares in the last quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA purchased a new stake in shares of Cisco Systems during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $203,000. Burton Enright Welch purchased a new stake in shares of Cisco Systems during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $497,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of Cisco Systems by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 38,905 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $2,997,000 after buying an additional 1,807 shares during the period. Finally, Fortis Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cisco Systems during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $282,000. 73.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on CSCO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $95.00 to $96.00 in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Cisco Systems from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $87.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Cisco Systems from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target 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. Two research 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, Cisco Systems has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $120.64.

Cisco Systems News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Cisco expanded its AI agentic security portfolio, adding Zero Trust Access for agents and new partnerships aimed at meeting rising enterprise demand for AI protection. Cisco Expands AI Agentic Security Portfolio: What's Ahead in 2026?
• Positive Sentiment: The company also unveiled broader AI security and quantum-safe initiatives, including Cloud Control and Live Protect, reinforcing the view that Cisco is well positioned for secure AI infrastructure spending. Cisco AI Security Push And Quantum Plans Test Investor Expectations
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its price target on Cisco to $130 from $120 and kept an overweight rating, signaling confidence in further upside. Morgan Stanley price target note
• Positive Sentiment: Technical commentary says Cisco broke above its 20-day moving average, which traders often view as a short-term bullish signal. Cisco Systems (CSCO) Recently Broke Out Above the 20-Day Moving Average
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor and media attention remains elevated, with Cisco among the most searched stocks on Zacks, reflecting continued interest in the name. Investors Heavily Search Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO): Here is What You Need to Know
• Negative Sentiment: EVP Oliver Tuszik sold 2,607 shares in a pre-arranged 10b5-1 transaction, a routine insider sale that may modestly pressure sentiment. SEC Form 4 filing

Insider Buying and Selling at Cisco Systems

In other Cisco Systems news, EVP Deborah L. Stahlkopf sold 7,981 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.50, for a total value of $634,489.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 187,097 shares in the company, valued at $14,874,211.50. The trade was a 4.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Jeetendra I. Patel sold 7,169 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.28, for a total transaction of $840,780.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider 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. In the last three months, insiders have sold 51,636 shares of company stock worth $5,698,459. 0.01% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Cisco Systems Stock Down 0.6%

Cisco Systems stock opened at $121.10 on Friday. Cisco Systems, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $63.93 and a fifty-two week high of $130.37. 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 firm has a 50 day moving average price of $102.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $86.50. The company has a market capitalization of $477.31 billion, a PE ratio of 39.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.01.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly 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. The business had revenue of $15.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.56 billion. Cisco Systems had a net margin of 20.14% and a return on equity of 28.44%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm 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. Research analysts expect that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.54 earnings per share 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 paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 6th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Cisco Systems's payout ratio is 54.55%.

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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