HighTower Advisors LLC Reduces Stock Position in Cisco Systems, Inc. $CSCO

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors reduced its Cisco position by 22.9% in the second quarter, selling 1.2 million shares and retaining approximately 4.06 million shares worth $476.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 73.33% of Cisco.
• Cisco reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with adjusted earnings of $1.22 per share and revenue of $17.25 billion, up 17.6% year over year. The company also issued fiscal 2027 earnings guidance and analysts project $4.43 in current-year EPS.
• Cisco declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, equivalent to $1.68 annually and a 1.5% yield. Wall Street maintains a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with an average price target of $129.68.

HighTower Advisors LLC lessened its position in Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO - Free Report) by 22.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,056,824 shares of the network equipment provider's stock after selling 1,201,695 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC owned 0.10% of Cisco Systems worth $476,514,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Groupe la Francaise raised its position in Cisco Systems by 2,141.9% during the 2nd quarter. Groupe la Francaise now owns 76,854 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $9,011,000 after purchasing an additional 73,426 shares during the last quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new stake in shares of Cisco Systems in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $128,751,000. Financial Insights Inc. grew its position in shares of Cisco Systems by 19.9% in the 2nd quarter. Financial Insights Inc. now owns 7,459 shares of the network equipment provider's stock worth $876,000 after buying an additional 1,239 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Cisco Systems by 11,624.6% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 706,130,053 shares of the network equipment provider's stock valued at $82,942,036,000 after buying an additional 700,107,427 shares during the period. Finally, Tanager Wealth Management LLP purchased a new position in shares of Cisco Systems during the second quarter valued at approximately $332,000. 73.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Cisco Systems Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CSCO opened at $109.20 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $430.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.69, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.79. Cisco Systems, Inc. has a one year low of $66.13 and a one year high of $130.37. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $114.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $102.38.

Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The network equipment provider reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.05. Cisco Systems had a net margin of 20.95% and a return on equity of 30.16%. The business had revenue of $17.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.99 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter 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 forecast that Cisco Systems, Inc. will post 4.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cisco Systems Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 21st. Investors of record on Friday, October 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis 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 50.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on CSCO shares. Bank of America raised their price target on Cisco Systems from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Evercore boosted their price objective on shares of Cisco Systems from $110.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Cisco Systems from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Sunday, August 16th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Cisco Systems from $130.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on shares of Cisco Systems from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $129.68.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cisco Systems

In other Cisco Systems news, EVP Deborah Stahlkopf sold 6,487 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.53, for a total value of $723,495.11. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 167,116 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,638,447.48. The trade was a 3.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Thimaya Subaiya sold 7,127 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.91, for a total value of $854,598.57. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 140,857 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,890,162.87. This represents a 4.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 53,611 shares of company stock valued at $6,066,680 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.01% of the company's stock.

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.