Cisco Systems, Inc. $CSCO Shares Bought by Generali Asset Management SPA SGR

Key Points

• Generali Asset Management increased its Cisco stake by 9.5% in the fourth quarter, adding 17,950 shares to reach 206,329 shares worth about $15.9 million.
• Cisco continues to see broad institutional support, with several major funds boosting positions; overall, about 73.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
• The company recently beat quarterly expectations, and analysts remain broadly constructive with a Moderate Buy rating and an average price target of about $90.29, while Cisco also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.42 per share.

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR grew its stake in shares of Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO - Free Report) by 9.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 206,329 shares of the network equipment provider's stock after acquiring an additional 17,950 shares during the period. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR's holdings in Cisco Systems were worth $15,894,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of CSCO. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in shares of 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 valued at $1,259,369,000 after acquiring an additional 9,648,265 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Cisco Systems by 19.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 33,748,414 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $2,309,066,000 after acquiring an additional 5,498,375 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Cisco Systems by 10.5% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 53,612,720 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $3,668,182,000 after acquiring an additional 5,081,469 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Cisco Systems by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 398,943,293 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $30,730,602,000 after acquiring an additional 4,049,893 shares during the period. Finally, Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in shares of Cisco Systems during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $233,956,000. 73.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cisco Systems News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and previews signal a likely Q3 beat and margin focus, which supports upside expectations ahead of the print. Cisco Q3 Earnings Preview
• Positive Sentiment: Consensus research notes growth in earnings expectations and constructive commentary about Cisco’s secular positioning (AI/networking exposure), which underpins higher price targets at some shops. Investment Story Shifting
• Positive Sentiment: Cisco confirmed participation in multiple May–June investor events (J.P. Morgan, etc.), increasing visibility with the financial community and giving management more chances to articulate guidance and margin drivers. Investor Events
• Neutral Sentiment: Research notes show a split analyst narrative — some lift targets while others caution that recent optimism reduces the margin for disappointment; this makes post-earnings guidance the key catalyst. Analyst Views Diverge
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro calendar (inflation data) and its potential impact on guidance and IT spending is a near-term watch item highlighted in week-ahead previews. Week Ahead
• Negative Sentiment: Cisco recently underperformed peers and there were headlines noting a sharp session decline, signaling near-term profit-taking and sensitivity to broader market moves. These short-term flows could amplify volatility into earnings. Stock Drops Despite Market Gains
• Negative Sentiment: MarketWatch flagged underperformance relative to competitors, a reminder that any weak guidance or margin miss could prompt a larger pullback. Underperformance vs. Peers

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cisco Systems news, EVP Deborah L. Stahlkopf sold 7,981 shares of Cisco Systems 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 187,097 shares in the company, valued at $14,874,211.50. This trade represents a 4.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Maria Victoria Wong sold 2,179 shares of Cisco Systems stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.74, for a total transaction of $169,395.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 28,807 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,239,456.18. This trade represents a 7.03% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 46,431 shares of company stock worth $3,574,820 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.01% of the company's stock.

Cisco Systems Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of CSCO opened at $92.16 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $82.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $78.56. Cisco Systems, Inc. has a 1-year low of $59.42 and a 1-year high of $94.71. The stock has a market cap of $364.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.92.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The network equipment provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.02. Cisco Systems had a net margin of 19.22% and a return on equity of 27.88%. The business had revenue of $15.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.11 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.94 EPS. The company's revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 3.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cisco Systems Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 2nd were issued a $0.42 dividend. This is a boost from Cisco Systems's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Cisco Systems's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CSCO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Argus raised shares of Cisco Systems to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. CICC Research raised their price objective on shares of Cisco Systems from $84.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price objective on shares of Cisco Systems from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Cisco Systems in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Cisco Systems presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $90.29.

Cisco Systems 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.