Argent Capital Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Cisco Systems, Inc. $CSCO

Key Points

• Argent Capital Management significantly increased its Cisco stake by 2,132.9% in the third quarter, ending with 91,750 shares valued at approximately $9.9 million. Institutional investors collectively own 73.33% of Cisco’s stock.
• Cisco reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.22 versus the $1.17 consensus estimate and revenue of $17.25 billion, up 17.6% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, equivalent to a $1.68 annualized payout and a 1.5% yield. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $128.52, compared with the reported share price of $112.11.

Argent Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO - Free Report) by 2,132.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 91,750 shares of the network equipment provider's stock after purchasing an additional 87,641 shares during the period. Argent Capital Management LLC's holdings in Cisco Systems were worth $9,875,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Cisco Systems in the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,129,647,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in Cisco Systems by 7.0% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 207,106,569 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $25,278,492,000 after acquiring an additional 13,512,872 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Cisco Systems by 11.6% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 59,836,782 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $4,609,227,000 after acquiring an additional 6,224,062 shares during the last quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its holdings in shares of Cisco Systems by 8,718.3% during the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 51,952,421 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $400,190,000 after acquiring an additional 51,363,281 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Cisco Systems by 18.0% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 50,320,905 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $3,876,219,000 after purchasing an additional 7,679,422 shares during the last quarter. 73.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Cisco Systems Price Performance

NASDAQ CSCO traded down $0.10 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $112.11. The company had a trading volume of 4,887,689 shares, compared to its average volume of 22,511,689. The company has a market capitalization of $441.98 billion, a PE ratio of 33.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $112.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $106.64. Cisco Systems, Inc. has a twelve month low of $66.81 and a twelve month high of $130.37.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The network equipment provider reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.05. Cisco Systems had a return on equity of 30.16% and a net margin of 20.95%.The company had revenue of $17.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.99 EPS. Cisco Systems's quarterly revenue was up 17.6% on a year-over-year basis. Cisco Systems has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.050-5.110 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 1.320-1.340 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cisco Systems Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 2nd will be issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 2nd. Cisco Systems's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.30%.

Insider Transactions at Cisco Systems

In related news, EVP Oliver Tuszik sold 2,760 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.46, for a total transaction of $310,389.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 165,276 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,586,938.96. This trade represents a 1.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Jeetendra I. Patel sold 7,170 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.57, for a total transaction of $799,956.90. Following the transaction, the insider owned 230,593 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $25,727,261.01. This represents a 3.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 quarter, insiders sold 44,869 shares of company stock worth $5,005,620. Corporate insiders own 0.01% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on CSCO. KeyCorp lifted their price target on Cisco Systems from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Cisco Systems in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. They set a "buy" rating and a $135.00 price objective on the stock. Freedom Capital raised Cisco Systems from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Sunday, August 16th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Cisco Systems in a research note on Wednesday, September 30th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $110.00 price objective for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Cisco Systems currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $128.52.

About Cisco Systems

Cisco Systems, Inc is a global technology company that develops networking, cybersecurity, collaboration, observability and data center solutions. Its products and services help businesses, governments, educational institutions and other organizations connect users and devices, manage infrastructure, protect digital environments and support cloud-based operations.

Cisco's portfolio includes routers and switches, wireless networking equipment, network management software, firewalls, identity and access tools, endpoint security products, collaboration applications and observability platforms.

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